


Everything Happens For A Reason

by KrisLetang



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Cutting, Gen, Self-Harm
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-28
Updated: 2016-01-31
Packaged: 2018-01-26 20:32:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 29,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1701584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KrisLetang/pseuds/KrisLetang
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Claude Giroux learns that sometimes it takes more than just you to get your life back together.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Cover

**Author's Note:**

> Please Comment

 

 


	2. Fate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sry for any OCness

Claude skated off the ice, he threw his stick at the bench and ripped his helmet off. This was not how a captain was supposed to play. 

"Claude," 

"Uh yeah Coach?" Berube had a grim look on his face, and that worried Claude, 

"I want to see you in my office after you change, yeah?" 

"Oh, uh yeah okay," Danny patted his shoulder, 

"Hey man, it's all right, we all have our rough days," Claude brushed him off and stalked into the locker room muttering, 

"More like rough 3 months," Sean had him laughing despite himself, and Hartsy was being as annoying as ever. He smiled at his friends as he put his gear in the locker. 

"Hey G!" Claude glanced in Kimmo's direction, "Barbecue still on Friday, you wanna come?" 

"You know what, why not. Where are we having it though?" Kimmo grinned, 

"Pronger's," he smiled back at his teammate, 

"Get ready to get your ass crushed at street hockey," 

"Now you sound like G," Claude laughed again, feeling much better. He left the locker room with a smile on his face. 

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"It's been settled," 

"What? No, Lavi said this team was being built around me, you can't just-" 

"G, Lavi is gone, and now I'm Coach. The Flyers need someone who can lead us. You just aren't cutting it, we are gutting right now, starting fresh, and you can do the same, with a new club of course," Claude was petrified, he knew he had been playing bad, but he hadn't been expecting this. He finally sunk back in his chair utterly defeated, 

"Where," he mumbled, tears burning his eyes, 

"Pittsburgh," Claude's head snapped up again, 

"You can't do this to me, this just isn't fair," he felt his coach's hand on his shoulder, 

"Claude, we are getting Jayson Megna for you and a first round draft pick," Claude scoffed disdainfully, but then sighed his shoulders slumping, tears still stinging his eyes. 

"When?" 

"After the next game," he stood up and stalked out of Berube's office.


	3. Kimmo and the Brières

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd really appreciate any feed back given :) enjoy!

Claude bumped into Kimmo as he was leaving. "Hey, what are you still doing here?" Kimmo smiled, 

"Coach wanted to see me," 

"Not you too, Man, it's brutal in there," Kimmo raised his eye brow, 

"Eh think I can handle it," Claude stuck around until Kimmo came back out, Jersey in hand. The defenseman pulled the jersey on and Claude gaped at the C. 

"He-he what?" He was so confused and heart broken, his team, his team was Kimmo's team now. Kimmo held out a jersey for him, and Claude took it, 

"Craig said this was for you," G pulled it on and looked at it, no C. It felt so plain without the C. There wasn't an A either, just plain old jersey, for a plain old player. 

"Kimmo, how-how could you?" Claude was so hurt right now. He stung with betrayal. 

"G, Berube says we need you to be Captain, I say yes, it is my duty to the team and as a player," Claude stomped off, heading home, his phone rang when he had made it to the parking lot, and he answered it, 

"G here," 

"Claude, it's Danny, where are you?" Claude face palmed, he had promised Danny and the boys he'd hang out over there, and stay the night. 

"Something came up, I'm sorry I'm late, I'll be there soon," 

"Man, are you okay?" 

"Oh yeah, I'll be fine, see you soon," Claude drove down the familiar roads to Danny's house and shed his jersey before going inside. He plastered a facade of happiness on before opening the door. He was bombarded as soon as he was in, 

"G! You're late!" Cam said loudly, Carson quickly following with, 

"Where were you?" Caelan was oddly quiet. 

"Sorry guys, had to talk to Coach," Danny hugged him and Claude smiled sadly. 

"Boys give G some space," Danny patted his friend on the back, "Sorry about them, they are just so excited to see you," 

"No, no, hey it's no big deal, I should've stopped by more," Claude sat on the couch and was immediately talked into a game of NHL 2013. Claude played for a few moments, until Danny came in and took the controller, replacing it with a beer. Claude looked at him thankfully, and sipped it as Danny took his place and ignored the whining coming from his annoying yet adorable clones. After a while, Danny dragged his two youngest into the kitchen to start dinner. 

"G, can I talk to you for a sec," Claude glanced at the fifteen year old, 

"What can I do for you?" 

"Are you really going to Pittsburgh?" Claude's eye widened, 

"Shit, how did you find out?" Caelan gave him a sad look, 

"I have a friend, who has a friend, who has a cousin, who works for Holmgren, overheard him shopping you to Shero, told me they were eager to get Megna in and you out. I had the sense to shut him up and make sure Carson and Cam didn't find out," they were whispering now. 

"Tell me your Dad doesn't know," Caelan nodded, "Keep it that way, I have one more game here, then I'm off to meet my new team," 

"Keep in touch," Claude smiled, "Promise," 

"Totally,"


	4. Break ups and New Beginnings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok three things,   
> 1) I know the Brière boys' ages are probably off but I need it that way for plot purposes  
> 2) Yes Ryanne is really over dramatic in this, but it's supposed to be an on off relationship and things have been building to this (this one's REALLY important for plot purposes)   
> 3) Please Comment!!! :)

Danny came in a half hour later with some grilled cheese. Claude smiled and took a bite, fighting tears as he realized this was probably the last time would be sitting here, eating grilled cheese with his best friend. Caelan patted his back before grabbing a movie which resulted in a fight between the three boys, "I am not watching a baby movie!" Caelan declared and Cam huffed, 

"Finding Nemo is not a baby movie," 

"Yes it it!" Carson and Caelan exclaimed and Cam ended up in tears, his brothers still bickering over watching Chainsaw Massacre or Friday the 13th. Claude set down his plate and picked the 5 year old up. 

"Cam, it's okay, shh," Cam sniffled and hid his face in Claude's shirt, embarrassed, 

"Sorry G," he mumbled, and Claude ruffled his hair, 

"No biggy man. You wanna watch Finding Nemo?" Cam nodded, and Claude pushed Caelan and Carson out of his way, snatching up the movies they were holding, 

"Hey!" 

"I've decided what we are watching," they didn't argue and sat back down. Claude popped Finding Nemo in and sat back next to Cam. 

 

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Later, Claude headed back to his apartment to pick up some clothes. He walked in the door, and dug through his drawer trying to find some sweatpants, "Claude?" 

"Yeah?" He said, still looking for clothes.

"Where were you?" 

"Spending the night at Danny's," 

"You never spend anytime here," he rolled his eyes they had this fight before, 

"Ryanne, this is my last chance to see him, to spend time with the boys," 

"You will have plenty of time later, I haven't seen you in like a week except for here and there," he finally turned towards her, 

"They are trading me, the Flyers are trading me, and this is it, I want to see Danny, I want to see his boys, before I have to leave on Saturday," 

"Fine, you know what, I'm done with this, we are through," Ryanne left and Claude sat there stunned, well this was obviously the worst day ever. He threw some shit into a duffle and left again, petting Harvey one last time before driving to Danny's. He was sure Ryanne would take Harvey and leave with her stuff by Saturday. 

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Claude was attacked once more as he came inside. Cam attached himself to Claude's leg and managed to cause G to smile. Claude helped the boys make a fort and they all huddled in there, slowly falling asleep. Cam fell asleep on top of Claude, Carson next to him and Caelan on the other side. Claude fell asleep soon after Caelan buried in a sea of blankets.


	5. Midnight Musings with a Heavy Heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please Comment!!!!

Claude's throat was dry when he woke up in the middle of the night. He carefully moved Cam and got up, grabbing a Gatorade and sitting on the front porch looking at Haddonfield. He was going to miss this place. Claude jumped when he felt a hand on his back. "Shit, what are you doing out here," he asked, hand on his chest. 

"What's wrong?" Danny asked, and Claude shook his head, 

"Ryanne broke up with me and some other stuff, just like stressed about hockey, you know," they sat in the dark for a while, silent at times, talking softly at others. Claude was tempted to tell Danny about the trade, but he didn't want to talk about it. It felt like a heavy weight on his shoulders. Eventually they both went back inside and Claude climbed back in the fort and felt the boys snuggle up against him and Cam sleepily crawl back on his chest. 

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

 

Claude woke up early the next morning, he gently moved Cam once more, and headed to the kitchen after grabbing a shirt. He smelled bacon before he had even set foot in the room, and as soon as he did, Danny pressed a mug of coffee into Claude's hand. He gratefully sipped it as he sat at the table. Once he finished his coffee, Claude sat in silence for a few minutes, savoring the time with his best friend. "Uh, can I like, get a shower quick while the boys are sleeping?" He asked softly. Danny nodded with a smile and Claude headed down the hallway and climbed under the spray of warm water. Afterwards, he felt refreshed, and headed back out for some breakfast, his sweatpants hanging low on his hips. Danny gave him some bacon with potatoes and eggs, and Claude smiled at his friend. "Thanks," he said as he dug in. After they finished eating, Claude packed up his stuff and left with the lame excuse that he had promised Scott he'd help him clean his garage. 

Claude hugged the boys and Danny before heading to the car and driving back to his lonely, empty apartment. He dragged some big boxes out of his closet and began packing his stuff up. Once he had everything packed up that he didn't need for the next two days, he grabbed something to eat, hoping he could empty his fridge before he left. He eventually fell asleep in the living room while watching How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed! :)  
> Sorry it's so short. I'll get another one up ASAP


	6. Broad Street Bench and Hotel Hangovers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't actually think that Claude Giroux would ever get himself drunk before a game, but in this instance, he is depressed and kind of doesn't care. He feels like he just a problem that is being passed onto another club. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy, and comments are encouraged!!

Claude groaned as he woke up to his phone ringing loudly. "G," he said groggily, 

"Hey Claude sorry if I woke you," 

"No, no, Danny, it's fine," Claude stood up and listened to Danny as he grabbed some coffee. 

"So the boys and I wanted to invite you to Cam's birthday party next week," Claude sighed, he'd be in Pittsburgh next week.

"Uh, I think I might be busy that day," Claude cringed, he could hear the disappointment in Danny's voice, 

"Oh, uh yeah, that's okay," Claude hated the silence following, he couldn't stand feeling like he let Danny down, and the boys, they would be so disappointed, 

"Hey, maybe I could you know figure something out," 

"Hey don't worry about it, you don't have to," 

"No I want to, it's just I don't know if I can," Claude frowned, and shook his head, 

"I said it was okay, don't worry about it," He sighed, 

"I said I'll see what I can do, maybe I can somehow manage to at least swing by," 

"Yeah, okay, just don't go too far out of your way," Claude smiled,

"I won't I promise," They talked for a while before Danny had to go pick Caelan up from Hockey practice. Claude moped around at home for while before heading out to see the city one last time. He walked around until he finally ended on South Broad Street, his second home, Claude stood in front of the doors of the Wells Fargo Center. He had tears running down his cheeks, this couldn't be happening to him, this was his home, he had played here his whole career and he didn't want that to change now. After a while of sitting in front of the stadium, he finally trudged back to his apartment, and fell asleep in front of the tv for the second night in a row. 

 

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Claude felt his legs wobble as he stepped onto the ice, maybe he shouldn't have had so many beers before playing. He felt like throwing up, but held himself together as he warmed up for his last game as captain. His head felt fuzzy, and his legs felt like jello. After a disappointing first few shifts, Berube benched him for the rest of the period. Claude went down to the locker room and threw up. He rinsed his face with some water and laid down on a training table with a towel over his face. When the team came down after the period Berube gave him a lecture once he smelled the alcohol on G's breath and benched him for the rest of the night. Claude took a shower and then left the arena, not in the mood to face his friends. He had emptied his locker and shoved everything in his car, which he drove to his apartment for the last time. 

Claude woke up groggily the next morning and went to the airport where he caught a plane to Pittsburgh. He immediately found a hotel, and as he made his way into the room it hit him, this was his new home. This city, the one he had despised and beaten the the year before, was his new home. He already missed Danny, Hartsy, and everyone else. He unpacked the things he needed for the next day, and then laid around watching tv for most of the afternoon. As night rolled around, the heavy feeling in his heart got worse, so he wandered around the city for a while. Finally he found a secluded bar where he drowned his sorrows in scotch. Vaguely he registered someone help him to a cab and the next thing he knew he was back in his hotel, in a warm bed. 

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

The next morning, he woke up, his head pounding, and the sky still dark. He got up and headed down the street to a café, where he had some breakfast, and then to Consol for his first morning skate as a Pittsburgh Penguin. The doors were open by then and he stepped into the arena and sighed. Claude walked slowly to the locker room, but was stopped short by Dan Bylsma. "Claude," he said warmly and that brought a smile to his face, maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all, "Welcome, I am so glad to see you, let's go to my office for a quick chat before we get you out on the ice," Once they were in Dan's office, Claude saw Mario and they shook hands before taking a seat. "First off, welcome to the Penguin's organization, and I sincerely hope that you have great time here. We can't wait to see you play," Claude smiled slightly and nodded. Mario handed him a hat, and a penguins tshirt with his name on the back. Claude grinned and followed them out to see his locker. There was a warm up jersey hanging there and Claude took it down, running his hand over the penguins logo, this was kind of weird, like some sort of twisted dream, but in a way he was grateful and he was happy. He pulled on the gear and headed out to the empty rink. 

Mario and Dan stood at the bench as he warmed up, and them tossed him a stick. He did some puck handling and shot some wristers and a slap shot. He was feeling good until he heard, "Mario, Dan, who's the new guy?" Claude recognized that voice. He turned around, "You!" Sid exclaimed, "What the hell is Claude Giroux doing here?" 

"Claude is the newest member of our team, and I expect you to be nice and welcome him," Mario said, Sid just hopped on the ice and brushed past him. Dan shot him a pointed glare from across the ice, and Sid offered Claude a hand. Claude shook Crosby's hand, and offered as small smile. Sid just glared at him and skated away. He felt a hand on his back, "Don't mind him Claude," Claude gave them a weak smile, but couldn't shake the heavy feeling in his gut. Soon enough everyone else arrived and Claude sighed in relief as everyone half ignored him, they kind of gave him weird looks, but mainly left him alone. Yet he felt this looming sense of sadness wash over him, just a few days ago, he may not have been playing well, but Danny had his back, and he and Brayden would mess around, whip each other with towels, have a beer, watch some basketball or play NHL 13. He had friends surrounding him, here he felt so alone. It seemed like every time someone thought about approaching him and started to get close, Sid was right there to step in and distract them. By the end of practice, all he wanted to do was call Danny, but the entire situation was so embarrassing, and he couldn't bring himself to do it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh and FYI the two organizations kept the trade under wraps and away from the media, so the fans and the players on both sides were unaware of what was happening.


	7. Letang and the Lemieuxs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy! I'm going away for the next week and I am unsure if I will have wifi, so I decided to give you guys a chapter to read while I'm gone. I am loving the feedback, please keep the comments coming!

Claude took a shower at the rink, and then half heartedly checked his phone. The messages were piling up from his old teammates, but he couldn't seem to make himself answer them. He sighed and closed his eyes. Then he began to pack his stuff up, and got moving so he could find a nicer hotel to stay in since he'd probably be there a while. As he was walking out the door, having dressed, Mario stopped him. 

"I was wondering, do you have a place to stay?" Claude considered lying but figured there was no point, 

"Uh, I was going to get a hotel room," 

"Well, you could stay at my house, we have a spare bedroom," Claude sighed, 

"I really wouldn't want to be a bother," 

"No, no seriously, it's fine," Claude finally agreed, 

"Ok, yeah, I guess," 

"Now, I know you don't have your car yet, so come and ride with me," Claude followed slowly, and they stopped at the hotel Claude had stayed in last night to get his bags that were promptly thrown in the back. He sat in the passenger seat, and looked out the window as Mario pulled out. "Good practice?" Claude sighed,

"It could have been worse," Mario squeezed his shoulder, 

"It will get better, I promise," Claude sighed, and shook his head, 

"I hope so, Sid hates me, and everyone just ignores me all practice," Mario gave him a sympathetic smile, 

"How about tomorrow, you try to initiate a conversation with someone," Claude shrugged, and let out a long breath. 

"I guess so," Mario let him alone for the rest of the drive, and grabbed one of his bags once they were parked, "Mario, you don't have to," Mario smiled once more, and Claude shook his head and grabbed the rest of his bags from the back. He walked in the front door of the massive house, and Mario led him up to the guest bedroom. Claude set his bags on the bed, "Thanks Mario," 

"You're welcome Claude, make yourself at home. Bathroom is down the hall," Claude began unpacking his bags after Mario left, and then he settled in bed to take a nap. 

 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

Danny finally shipped his boys off to school, promising to talk to Claude about spending the night again, "Tell G I say hi!" Cam exclaimed as Carson all but dragged him out the door to catch the bus. Danny smiled fondly and checked his phone to see if Claude had texted him back yet, nope. Danny frowned, maybe he was sick. Eventually he went and got ready for practice, and finally headed out the door. He caught Kimmo as he was walking in and they began talking. He was laughing at Brayden as he changed, and only noticed the missing red head as he stepped onto the ice. Berube came out a few minutes later and began talking, but everyone turned toward the tunnel from the locker room as a brunette came hurrying out of it, 

"Sorry *pant* I'm late, I got lost," it was dead silent, 

"What is he doing here?" Scotty finally piped up, and Berube smiled, 

"Jayson is the newest member of our team," everyone patted Jayson's shoulder and the rookies began talking to him as they started their drills. He was already fitting in great. Danny skated by the bench still curious as to Claude's whereabouts, 

"Uh, Coach, is Claude sick or something, cause he doesn't usually miss practice," Berube raised his eye brow,

"Danny, where do you think we got Megna?" Danny blanched.

 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

 

Claude groaned as someone shook him awake. "Claude," an unfamiliar voice said, he blinked, and immediately recognized the woman above him, "Claude, dinner is ready," he cleared his throat, 

"Mrs. Lemieux, thank you, I'll be down in a minute," 

"Nathalie cher, call me Nathalie," she offered him a small smile, and he patted her hand that rested on his shoulder,

"Nathalie it is then, thank you though," she left and he eased himself out of bed and pulled a shirt on before heading downstairs and lingering awkwardly at the door to the dining room. Mario beckoned him in, 

"Claude, come on in, take a seat," he gestured to the seat next to him. Claude sat down and was silent, just waiting for someone else to speak. Nathalie came in, carrying a plate and she set it down in front of Claude, 

"I heard you liked grilled cheese," he gave her a big smile, 

"It's my favorite," he said, "Thank you," she squeezed his shoulder, 

"You're welcome cher," he smiled at Mario, and took a bite. He almost choked though when he heard, 

"Nathalie, Mario, I'm back," Mario was oblivious to Claude's reaction, 

"In the dining room Sid," Sid had a grin on his face but it quickly melted into a frown when he saw Claude. 

"What is he doing here?" Sid asked, glaring at the ginger. Mario gave him a stern look, 

"Sid, be nice, he is here for the same reason you are," Claude stood up, 

"I uh, I think I'll eat in my room, I don't want to cause any trouble," 

"Claude that's nonsense, you aren't causing any trouble," Mario said, Claude brushed past Sid, 

"Still, I'll uh see you tomorrow," he headed up the stairs, and closed the door to his bedroom. Claude checked his email as he finished eating, Danny had sent him email after email, and Claude just sighed and ignored them. His phone was filling up with texts from Danny as well, and he just wasn't prepared to deal with that yet. He set the plate on his night stand and closed his eyes once more, but he just needing up tossing and turning. He couldn't sleep despite being completely exhausted. His whole world had come crashing down around him the past couple months. 

………………………….…………………………………………….………………………….…

 

Claude rolled out of bed, the next morning and pulled on some clothes before heading down stairs. He found Mario in the dining room and Nathalie got him some breakfast. In the middle of breakfast, a bleary eyed Sidney Crosby stumbled out and into a chair. Nathalie brought some breakfast out for Sid as well, and surprisingly they made it through the entire meal without an incident. Claude brushed his teeth afterward and got ready to go to practice. He was sitting in the living room, waiting for Mario, when Sid tapped his shoulder. "Are you coming to practice?" Claude looked at him funny, 

"Why do you care?" 

"Because I'm the Captain and that's my job," Claude rolled his eyes,

"I'm waiting for Mario," Sid sighed, 

"Mario asked me to give you a ride, he doesn't always come to practice," Claude stood up and followed Sid out to the car. He threw his gear in the back and then climbed in the front next to Sid. When they made it to the rink, Claude climbed out and made his way to his locker. He sighed and pulled on his practice jersey and the rest of his gear. The rest of the team started trickling in and Claude offered a smile toward Matt Cooke who just glared back. Next he waved a little at Pascal Dupuis, who shook his head and walked away. Claude sat back and watched the interaction throughout the locker room, James Neal and Paul Martin hung around with people like Evgeni Malkin and Matt Niskanen, while Sidney was with some of the older guys like Brooks Orpik, Marc-Andre Fleury, and Kris Letang. Then there were the rookies who huddled in the corner with the addition of Beau Bennett. He sighed and hung toward the back of the James Neal crowd, not dumb enough to approach Crosby's group and not in the mood to hang with rookies. He ended up right next to Paul Martin who didn't glare at him, but also didn't say anything. As everyone was making their way out to the rink, Kris Letang stopped him, and Claude immediately put his hands in front of his face. His lasting impression of Kris Letang was not the best, it was from the playoffs last year ago where Tanger had beat the crap out of Kimmo, and Claude didn't really want that to happen to himself. 

"Hey man, chill, I'm not going to hit you or anything," Kris said with a laugh, Claude peeked out at him, 

"Oh, right…" he cleared his throat, "Yeah," was his lame response as he lowered his arms, still ready to throw them back up if this was some sort of joke. Kris smiled and nudged him along toward the ice, 

"I just wanted to welcome you to the team," Claude stood there stunned, 

"Wait, what," he was so confused, 

"I know some of them are being assholes, but they'll grow up soon enough," Claude couldn't help but smile, 

"Thanks man," Flower came by, 

"C'mon Kris," the goalie dragged the defenseman out on the ice. Claude shook his head, seemed like everyone but Kris, Dan, and Mario were against him. Tanger was still hanging around with Sid, Kunitz, and Dupuis, so Claude kind of just skated around in the corner. He felt so alone and it sucked. Soon enough Dan came out and they got started. They separated into their lines, and Claude closed his eyes, silently begging not to be put with Crosby. 

"Um, Giroux, let's put you with Gibbons and Bennett on 3rd," he nodded and headed off to stand with his new line mates. Apparently Brian Gibbons wasn't there, so they put Pyatt in his place. Claude looked at Bennett who gave him a slight smile, but then stared at his feet after he glanced at the dirty look Kunitz was throwing him. Giroux took a face off at center ice against Malkin, and they started to scrimmage. A few seconds later, he found himself face down on the ice. Claude groaned as he stood up, Malkin had hammered him, and it had really hurt. He had made a pass to Bennett in the high slot, and then the next thing he knew, he was face down on the ice with Kris and Dan asking if he was okay.


	8. Nostalgia and the Mustache Boys Blues

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoy! Sorry it's so short. I'm trying to keep up with the posting, but I hit roadblocks sometimes. I really appreciate anyone who takes the time to comment! Thanks :)

"Shit, yeah, I'm okay," he said rubbing his neck. Claude's line stepped off the ice, and he sat on the bench, still shaken from that hit. Later he got bashed into the boards by James Neal, who couldn't stop his momentum. After that, Claude sat on the bench for a good amount of time. Dan asked him again if he was okay, and Claude nodded, still a little dizzy. He got up in time to do the shoutout drill at the very end of practice. He hung back from the group, not in the mood to be rejected again, and listened as they all chirped each other. Claude was still hanging toward the back after missing his first try, and jumped as he felt someone's hand on his shoulder, 

"Hey man," Claude stared at James as he struggled for words, "Look, I'm sorry I hit you that hard, I really didn't mean to," Claude smiled slightly and brushed it off, 

"Whatever, it's no biggy," 

"Nealer!" Geno called from across the ice, "Bet you be Mustache Boy, Lazy," James flipped him off and began to chase him around, leaving Claude alone again. Neal put the rest of his shots in and Tanger put in all of his. Claude seemed to be the only one struggling besides Flower, but at least he hadn't let up four in a row yet. Claude failed to put all but one in, and he was officially Mustache Boy. He shook his head and headed to the locker room. Claude just sat on the bench, gear and all and stared straight ahead. The rest of the team changed, and one by one left, but Claude just sat there. Eventually he ripped his helmet off and put it in his locker. He stepped out on the ice again and skated laps until his thighs ached, and finally at least partially satisfied, he changed and headed out to his car that was finally there. He did a double take when he saw Kris Letang sitting on the trunk of his own car, seemingly waiting for Claude. The red haired man approached his teammate's car, and smiled slightly at the black haired man. He climbed up next to Letang, and they sat in silence. 

"You take a long time to get dressed," Claude laughed despite himself. 

"Yeah, I guess," Kris cracked a smile, 

"You know, it's much better when you laugh," For the first time in a long while, Claude actually smiled. He grinned at Kris and felt a weight lifted off his shoulders. "Are you like alright?" He shrugged, 

"Not really," 

"It will get better, I promise it will," Claude pursed his lips and sighed, 

"I guess," he replied shortly, hoping Kris would stop talking about it, but he had no such luck, 

"Ah don't be such a…" Kris trailed off trying to think of the English word he wanted, "Don't be such a downer man," 

"That's easy for you to say," Kris kicked his foot, 

"C'mon stop being a dick, you wanna go and do something?" Claude rubbed the back of his neck, trying to by time and think of an excuse,

"I have stuff to do tonight, and you know," Kris rolled his eyes, 

"Mmmhmm, what kind of stuff?" 

"You know, stuff," Kris laughed, 

"You're bad at lying, there's a Wilkes Barrie Scranton game this evening, wanna go?" 

"Fine," Claude said defeated, he didn't enjoy being all alone, but at the same time he didn't want someone to hang out with him just cause they felt sorry. Kris stole his phone and put his number in there before adding Claude's number to his own. 

"I'll text you details," Kris called over his shoulder as he climbed off the trunk. Claude got down to and headed to his own car. He drove to Mario's and flopped down in bed, staring at the ceiling. Life sucked sometimes. After a while he went to get a shower, letting the disappointment of practice wash away. 

 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

Claude spent a few minutes tidying his room up, waiting for Kris to come and pick him up. They had texted back and forth for a while during the afternoon, and it was determined (mainly by Kris) that Kris would pick him up, and Claude would be paying for tickets. He was still confused about how he ended up being the one spending the money, something about having a bigger contract. Finally he heard the door open down stairs, and grabbed his wallet before heading down. Kris stood at the door, a light grey toque pulled over his black hair. He practically dragged Claude out to his car, and then began to drive. 

Claude stared at his hands in the car as they headed toward the arena, and Kris kept sneaking glances at him. Claude was beginning to get ticked at all the attention, "Can I help you?" He asked, 

"Dude, are you alright, you look like you haven't slept in ages," he shrugged, 

"Yeah, just a little under the weather," Kris didn't question him further, but Claude was pretty sure that his new found friend could see past the façade of happiness. He couldn't bear the thought of someone seeing how empty he felt on the inside. His whole world seemed to have crashed down around him.


	9. Down and Depressed Before Bonding over Boston

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claude is feeling down after a conversation with Crosby and then wait for it! A Game Against BOSTON! duh duh duh!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Descriptions of self harm are included in this chapter. I'm going to try to be not too graphic because this story isn't meant to be a dark angsty tragedy tale, but a story of an athlete who needs to get his life back on track. 
> 
> Now to lighter things
> 
> 1\. Geez I haven't updated in a while. I am so sorry.  
> 2\. I probably won't get another chapter up for a while. *cringe* With school and soccer I get busy.  
> 3\. I hope you guys enjoy and some comments would make my day. I'm sorry again and I'll get another on up as soon as possible.

When Claude returned to Mario's that night, he felt so much better than he had in a long time. It was great to be able to sit down and watch a hockey game with someone. He waved bye to Tanger before heading inside. Sidney was at the table seemingly doing nothing. Claude got a cup of coffee and sat down across from him. "Hey Claude," Sid softly muttered, and the ginger haired man's head shot up in surprise, 

"Oh," he cleared his throat, "Hey Crosby," 

"Where were you?" 

"Um, a Wilkes-Barre Scranton game," he answered after a few minutes. 

"Nice, uh did you go with anyone?" Claude paused, he didn't want to get Tanger in trouble with Sid. 

"Yeah, it was Tanger's idea," Sid frowned, 

"Oh cool. Um I just wanted to let you know that I will personally make sure Geno doesn't hit you like that again. Are you sure you're alright?" Claude shrugged, 

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Thanks," Crosby nodded before standing up, and disappearing. Claude sighed and shook his head. He was getting the beginnings of a headache, and that feeling that would start to build at the pit of his stomach, the empty feeling that made him feel like just laying in bed all day. Doctor's would call it depression, but Claude called it everyday life. He went to get in the shower, getting a towel and clothes to put on afterwards. He turned on the water and let it warm up as he slowly undressed. He was about to shave his face, when he dropped the razor and it clipped his stomach. He winced, but the stopped, it actually kind of felt good. It hurt, but he felt something that wasn't just emptiness. As he bent down to pick up the razor, he remembered that he wasn't even aloud to shave his face anyways. He straightened up and looked himself over in the mirror. The pain was dying down, and he needed feeling. He made another cut right next to the first one, and at first sucked in a sharp breath, but the he reveled in the pain. After two more, he stopped, he didn't want to kill himself, he just wanted to feel something. Claude held a washcloth to the cuts on his stomach, and when he was satisfied enough, he got in the shower finally. 

 

That night, Claude got the best sleep he had in a long time. 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

Pretty much everything went back to normal after that. Well, that is if you consider being ignored by all the people who are supposed to be as close as a brother to you normal. Claude woke up early the next morning, and got a quick shower before heading to the rink. Once he got there, it hit him that there was a game today. Claude smiled at Kris, and realized how much he had missed getting a smile back. They worked on face off plays, and he won the face off against Malkin and sent the puck back to Paul Martin who passed it to Kris. Kris slapped it onetime right past Marc-André Fleury. Although it was during practice, Claude felt like it was real. He couldn't help but embrace Kris, who was grinning. They ended early so no one was tired for the game, and in the locker room, Claude couldn't help but smile as Beau Bennett talked to him some, "So, is it a lot different here than in Philadelphia?" Claude nodded, 

"It's more simple, more easy going," 

"I know Gibby hasn't been here recently, but he will be here tonight. I think you'll like him," Claude looked at him, 

"I sure as hell hope so," Beau laughed before heading out. Claude finished getting dressed and headed to his car after playfully bumping into Kris. "See you tonight," Kris grinned, 

"Better get your game on G, we're gonna need you against Boston," Claude knew Kris was joking around for the most part and trying to be nice, but it kind of hurt a little. He knew that Kris wasn't trying to be a jerk, so he brushed it aside and smiled, 

"You too Mr. Norris Trophy," Claude was almost sure that Kris was going to win it, he was definitely the most deserving of the candidates. Claude drove back to Mario's house trying to clear his head. He never liked Boston, even when he was in Philadelphia, especially Chara. After that whole Max Pacioretty incident, Claude did not like Zdeno Chara one bit. And Rask, Tuukka Rask drove him insane, that man was like a brick wall. He channeled that hatred for Boston to playing good, no not good, Claude channeled that to playing great. He wanted to tear everyone apart on the ice, to beat everyone. The whole afternoon, he picture himself scoring goal after goal until he had a hat trick. Before Claude knew it, it was game time. He drove to the arena, and got out of his car, dressed in a new pink dress shirt and a gray jacket and pants. He felt better than he had in a long, long time. 

It was a relief for him not having to give any speeches, just having to be himself, having to listen and get motivated, but not having the extra responsibility. He got to focus on doing what he liked best, dominating. He bumped Kris again as they warmed up, and grinned, "You ready to kick some ass?" Kris grinned back,

"Hell yeah," Claude noticed Gibbons pretty quickly. He was one of the only people he hadn't seen yet. He skated up to the man and shook his hand, 

"I'm Claude Giroux," 

"I'm Brian Gibbons, nice to meet you," they spoke while skating, but soon enough it was time for the National Anthem and the game. That was another thing, no more God Bless America, now it was just the National Anthem. He waited silently on the ice. Claude was surprised that Bylsma had given him the start. He had been just sitting in the locker room, finishing up taping his socks and stick as Bylsma finished his pre-game speech. 

"All right the starting lineup is, 28, 19, 49, 58, and 7, Flower's in the cage. Let's get out there and get loose boys, we need to beat Boston to take over the number one spot, so let's go do it!" Here he was, at center ice. The face off was between him and David Krecji. Claude won and sent the puck back to Kris. Kris made a D to D pass across the blue line to Paul Martin, who sent it back up to him. Claude gave it to Brian Gibbons. By the end of the period, it was 1-0 Boston, but the Penguins were playing well. The two reasons it wasn't the other way around was because Rask was playing unreal, and although Flower was matching that, Marchand had run him over right before a shot. The puck got put in and no call was made. Crosby had been outraged, the whole team was pissed off, and no one was playing well enough the last minute or two to even hope to score a goal.


	10. Breaking through Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claude learns to work with his new teammates.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys thanks for being patient with me!! I've got some great ideas for this story so try to bear with me. I would love some comments. I will try to get a chapter up next week. :) Enjoy

For the first time in a long while, he felt good about the way he played as he headed in the locker room. He watched as everyone gave Flower a little tap with their sticks and considered doing it himself, but he finally decided against it. He sat at his locker partially undressed, and listened as Dan talked. 

"Ok guys, I saw a lot of good things out there. Claude, you are doing great at generating chances. Kris and Paul, beautiful work. That having been said, I want you to think about those last few minutes out there, that was shit. You can't let a call like that affect you so much. C'mon, you guys have got to find Rask's weakness and exploit it. I want you to go back up there and hold your heads up high, be confident and aggressive. Harder forechecking, forwards go back and cover more, defensemen support the rush. The power play needs to be better. We had one chance already, and we need to take the man-advantage and use it! Changes, 28, I want you up on the first power play unit with Sid and Geno. 7, I want you and Nisky to switch. You will be on the first unit, and Niskanen you will be on second. Sutter, Neal, and Jokinen on the 2nd power play unit," Claude taped himself up a new stick, pulled his jersey and pads back over his head, and talked to Gibby a little bit. 

"I need you to push the net more, and Bennett, try to draw the defenders away. Also if we get a two on one, just keep screaming about how open you are, I want the defender to try to block the pass and maybe I'll shoot or saucer it over the block," they nodded and listened intently to his instructions. "Any suggestions?" They shrugged, and smiled, 

"Sounds good to me," Brian said, and Beau nodded. It was time for the 2nd period and Kris gave him a tap as he went out on the ice. They warmed up again, and then it was time. Sid's line started out the second period with Kris and Paul behind them. Flower looked more focused than Claude had ever seen him before. By the middle of the period, it was still 1-0, so Bylsma moved Geno up with Sid and put Claude as the second line center. It was much different with James and Jussi. They both made him move faster, but Claude liked the way they played. He struggled to keep up with Neal who was seemingly all over the place. There was shot after shot on Rask, but the score held up going into the third. Everyone was frustrated as they sat in the locker room, but when they came out, no one showed it.

It was fair to say that Claude played his best 20 minutes of hockey yet that year. He was all over the place, and just like that, there were five minutes left, and it was still 1-0 Bruins. The time was ticking, and when Claude won the face off in the defensive zone, there were 2 minutes left. He passed it to Jussi, who sent it back to Martin, who sent it to James. James shot the puck, but it rebounded off to Claude. Claude passed it back to Kris, who rifled it over Rask's shoulder and into the net. Everyone rushed over to hug Kris, and Claude patted his helmet, "That was a hell of a shot man," Kris laughed,

"The pass wasn't too shabby," Claude grinned and then skated by the bench bumping everyone's fist. They changed lines, and Claude jumped when Paul Martin gave him a little tap with his stick. He almost spit out the Gatorade he had been chugging, but managed to swallow and look at Martin, 

"Great job out there. That pass was great," Claude smiled, 

"Thanks, you looked pretty damn good out there too," Everyone was grinning on the way in the locker room, they had done it, they had forced an overtime. Sid stood in the middle of the room, his face serious, 

"Look at me guys, that goal was gorgeous, kudos to you Kris, but we aren't done yet. We need to go out there and show Boston who the damn boss is, this our house, and this game is ours for the taking. Let's go out there, score one more goal. That's all we need to end this, one more goal." Claude closed his eyes, he remembered that year when the Flyers made it to the Cup Final, but now that seemed so far away yet so close at the same time. He wanted to do so well today, he needed to play well in this overtime, for his team. The Penguins, he could now finally think of them as his team. He pulled his Jersey back over his head and stared at the logo, The Penguins logo, and he knew that he had to step up and start playing his game no matter what the situation in the locker room. He owed it to Mario, who had taken him in, to Kris, who had befriended him, and to Dan and Ray, who had given him a chance. Right then and there Claude Giroux made it his personal job to carry the Penguins to the Stanley Cup, and to bring it all home to Pittsburgh where it belonged.


	11. Flower's Heroics

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys Merry Christmas!!! 
> 
> 1\. I know it's unlikely this would ever happen, but I love Flower and he deserves it!!   
> 2\. My story is kind of a mix of the shortened season, last year and this season. I thoughT we had such good chances the last two years and I was so frustrated with the outcomes so I mashed things that happened each season into my story.   
> 3\. I would love comments as usual!! 
> 
> I hope you enjoy!! :)

On the way out of the tunnel, Claude saw Kris tap Fleury, "You're going to win us this game," Marc-André grinned. Claude was on the bench when it happened, but Kris was on the ice. It was 2 and a half minutes into over time, and Tuukka Rask made a save. Milan Lucic and Brad Marchand created a two on one situation and somehow Fleury made a glove save. Kris yelled, "Open net!" Claude's head spun, and he saw Tuukka Rask scrambling to get his stick that had skidded off to the corner. Fleury thew the puck down and cleared it as hard as he could in as straight of a line as he could manage. Rask tried to dive back to get it, but he was too late. The puck sailed into the open net, and Marc-André Fleury scored his first career goal. Everyone jumped on him like they had just one the cup. Claude grinned, but hung by the bench. He jumped when Dan Potash came up behind him, 

"So Claude, how does it feel, to be a Pittsburgh Penguin?" Claude grinned, 

"I really like the Pittsburgh organization and how they have treated me, Dan and Mario welcomed me with open arms, giving me a place to stay, helping me through this tough spot, and I really have enjoyed getting to know the team and how different it is than the Philadelphia organization," 

"Were you aware of the fact that somehow management kept this under wraps, and none of the fans knew what happened to you, none of the media?" Claude laughed, 

"No, I was actually not aware that they were keeping this such a secret, but I am so glad to be here," with that, Claude stepped off the ice and headed down to the locker room. 

On his way out of the rink, Mario stopped him, "Great game Claude, I am so proud of you," Claude gave him a tired smile, 

"Thank you so much," Mario patted him on the back before moving on to see Sid. Claude got in his car, but for some reason, he just wasn't ready to go home yet. He cruised around the city, taking in all the new sights, before stopping at a bar. He felt better than he had two days before, but he still had that yearning, homesick feeling. He missed having friends, he missed hanging out with Danny, but most of all Claude missed that feeling of security and the fact that he could rely on his teammates to be there for him. He felt so much better after a few rounds, and he figured why not, he deserved a little bit of happiness. By the time he was fumbling with his phone to call Kris, he was so drunk it wasn't even funny anymore. "Hey Kris," he said, his tongue feeling heavy, 

"Claude? Are you drunk?" 

"Kris *hiccup*, I need a ride," Kris was in the middle of a late dinner with Catherine and Alex. He was holding his son as Claude rambled on, switching into French at certain points, 

"Claude," the ginger just kept talking, "Claude…" Kris sighed as he still wasn't able to get Claude's attention, "Where are you?" Finally Kris was able to make out the name of the bar after a few tries. "I'll be there soon, don't go anywhere," He stood up and kissed Catherine's cheek, handing her Alex. When he made it to the bar, and found Claude, stumbling around inside, he sighed and steadied his teammate. "C'mon, let's get you home," the ginger stumbled out to the car, and into the passenger seat. Half way back to Mario's house, Claude was crying into Kris's shoulder and mumbling about how he wanted to go home and how he missed Danny. Kris muscled Claude into the Lemieux's house, and glared at Sid as he dragged a still bawling Claude upstairs, "Look what you've done now," he pulled off his friend's shoes and helped him in bed. Kris turned out the light and walked downstairs. 

"Is he okay?" Mario asked softly, 

"Yeah, but he's gonna have one hell of a hangover tomorrow morning," Mario cracked a smile, 

"Thanks Kris," 

"No problem," 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

Claude blinked as bright light flooded his vision. The smell of breakfast floated into his room, and he usually would have been out to the table by now, but his head was pounding. He couldn't remember anything after leaving the arena. He pushed himself up into a sitting position and groaned. He managed to stand up and tiredly make his way down to the table. Mario patted him on the back, and Nathalie brought him some food. He ate breakfast before trying to clear his head by going for a run. He couldn't shake that deep depressed feeling he had been drowning in lately. Claude sat on the curb in the Pittsburgh Suburbs, and finally pulled out his phone. He dialed the number that he knew so well, and when the warm kind voice answered, he felt like he was back at home in Philadelphia. "Claude?" 

"Danny, I'm sorry I didn't call before."


	12. When the Wrongs Are Righted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!!!   
> Sorry about the wait, I had some lingering effects on my neck from a concussion I got about a year ago. (Getting kicked in the mouth sucks)! Finally got that sorted out. 
> 
> I would love some comments!! 
> 
> (If I get a comment tonight, I'll post another chapter before Monday) 
> 
> Stick around I have big plans for this story :)

"Danny, I'm sorry I didn't call before," There was a slight pause on the other side, 

"It's fine, I watched your last game, you played great," 

"Oh thanks, I just have been dealing with some stuff lately, and I really needed to hear something from home,"

"Are you alright, is Pittsburgh a good place?" 

"Yeah, I'm staying with Mario Lemieux, and I really like Dan Bylsma, he is an amazing coach," Danny chuckled, 

"I never thought we'd be talking about how great Pittsburgh is," Claude talked to Danny for a while, and when he finally hung up, a little bit of that empty feeling was gone. 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

Kris was starting to realize how depressed Claude actually was. He was worried about the other man. He shook his head, still unsure about what to do. He wanted to help, so he decided he would just have to take matters into his own hands. Kris grabbed the phone and dialed Sid's number. "What do you want Tanger?" Sid asked softly. 

"You need to start acting like a good leader and accept that Claude is part of our team," Sid was silent for a few seconds, 

"I know Tanger, I just, I have no idea what's gotten in to me recently. Is he okay?" Kris smiled, this was the Sid he knew, 

"Yeah I think so, but he needs support not rejection," Sid was silent, 

"I don't know if he will be able to forgive me for being such an asshole," Kris spoke to his captain for a while before hanging up. He was so happy that Sid finally came to his senses and they were going to have a team meeting after practice tomorrow. Hopefully things would only get better. 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

Claude texted Danny on and off that whole night. He told Danny about how lonely he felt and how he wanted to be back home in Philly. Danny was so supportive and once he realized how upset Claude truly was, he agreed to join him in a Pittsburgh for lunch the next day. Claude sighed and built up his courage before texting Tanger to ask for restaurant recommendations. He felt so nervous doing anything now, he had the thought lingering in the back of his head that if he took one wrong step he'd be traded to the next team and become their problem. When he got a text back almost immediately, he smiled, and then texted Danny the time he wanted to meet. 

Claude took a shower and then settled into his room with his Xbox and a beer. He was engrossed in his game, swearing and yelling at the tv, until his phone started ringing loudly. He cursed under his breath and paused the game. The number was unknown, but he answered anyway, running a tired hand through his hair. "Hello?" 

"Uh Claude?" Came a timid voice that sounded unsure about the call, 

"Yes?" He said impatiently wanting to get back to his game, 

"It's Paul Martin, um Kris gave me your number. Nealer and I were going to go out to coach a junior hockey team and we were wondering if you wanted to go with us," Claude thought about it for a minute before turning his game off and pulling some shoes on while he talked to Paul, 

"Sure, can I drive over to your house or something?" 

"Uh, let's meet at the rink because you probably need to pick up your skates," Claude hopped in his car and headed toward the rink with a grin on his face. 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

The next day, Claude drove to practice, and when he walked in the locker room, the tension that he could feel in the air normally, wasn't as thick. He was silent as he started to pull his gear on in the corner, and looking on from the doorway, Sid noticed how lonely he looked. Once everyone arrived, Sid blocked them from heading on to the ice, "If everyone could stay here for a minute, I have something I need to say," Everyone took a seat, "I need to start this off with an apology to everyone, I have been a bad captain the past few days. So I'm sorry to all of you, but especially to Claude, I have not treated you with professionalism, or kindness. We have had our differences in the past, and as Captain I should be able to get over that, but instead I let my personal feelings get in the way. You were going through a tough time that I couldn't even imagine and I just made it worse, so Claude I am so sorry. Lastly I want to address how you all are expected to treat new teammates. I take full responsibility for what has happened before today, but from now on I will hold each of you responsible for your own actions. You are to welcome new teammates, treat them with the utmost professionalism, and you are to make them feel welcome. I want to personally thank Tanger for upholding those values when I led everyone else the other way. And now finally and very belated, Claude, welcome to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Can we start fresh?" Claude had turned red by that point but he smiled and gave a small nod. He received a few pats on the back on his way to the ice and he smiled a little more as he played. 

 

He hugged Danny tightly when he saw him in the parking lot of the restaurant. Danny squeezed Claude back, having missed the ginger haired man. Claude talked Danny's ear off. He had missed being able to talk to someone he trusted. Danny laughed at him and chirped him, and then tried to pay for their meals, but Claude wouldn't have it. He payed for the meals, and when Danny rolled his eyes, Claude stuck out his tongue. 

They drove around for a while and Danny lingered as long as he could, but he needed to drive home at some point that night. Eventually Claude hugged him once more and let him go with the promise to call. He was alone again, that was the first thought that popped into Claude's head. He felt really lonely, but then his phone started buzzing. He checked it and there was a text from Kris asking if he wanted to come over and play some XBox and then go to Paulie's house for a party. Claude texted him back and the hopped in his car to start over toward his friends house.


	13. Party at Paulie's

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning- This chapter contains self harm. 
> 
>  
> 
> Here's the chapter I promised :) 
> 
> More comments please!!! They make me so happy. Sorry it's a short one, I'll try to get another one up by next week. 
> 
> Enjoy :)

At Kris's apartment, Claude, Marc, and Kris ordered some pizza. They played some Call of Duty and it got a little out of hand. Kris beat everyone as usual. He shot Claude right in the head, and then Flower started laughing. Claude shoved him off the couch, and he laughed harder. They started wrestling while Kris shot Marc and then turned off the XBox. After that Kris turned some stupid tv show on and got some beer for each of them. Finally they just headed off towards Paulie's where most of the team was. Claude had a good time at Paulie's where they just drank and blasted music and danced. He got himself a nice warm buzz, but not wasted. He danced with a few girls that showed up. Claude was having a great time, but then he decided to drink more. After a while he couldn't tell Kris from Sid. By midnight he had tripped over his own feet onto Paulie's couch and passed out.

 

The next morning, Claude blinked and shut his eyes quickly trying to keep the light out. His head was pounding, and he was vaguely aware that someone was half on top of him. For a brief second he thought maybe he had gotten laid last night by some random girl that he already didn't remember the name or face of, but as he opened his eyes once more, he saw Marc-André Fleury sprawled out over his legs. He looked around and Kris was passed on the floor next to the couch, Sid was passed out by the TV, and Paul Martin stood in his kitchen making breakfast. Claude sat up, trying not to disturb Marc. Kris stirred a little below him, but just turned over and went back to sleep. Claude considered doing that, but he really needed to use the bathroom, and he was starving. Claude eased his legs out from under Marc, and then headed toward the bathroom. His head felt like shit and when he pulled his shirt off briefly, the cuts on his stomach were red and looked bad. He made a mental note to put some antibacterial cream on them when he got home. He pulled his shirt back on, and washed his face after taking a piss. He felt better as he went to the kitchen where Paulie had a couple mugs of coffee ready. He was over shaking Kris and Marc awake. They sleepily pulled themselves over to the coffee and started to drink it. Claude was still half asleep but he was much better than the two men next to him. 

 

After a few minutes, everyone was more awake and Paulie whispered conspiratorially, "Let's poor some cold water on Sid," Kris cracked a smile, and Flower was already half out of his seat. Claude laughed, but stayed there as the others went to carry out their plan. When they poured the water on Sid, he started screaming, and then swearing at them. He was flustered for a minute but then he laughed once he was actually awake and had some coffee in him. They sat around he the table, eating breakfast that Paulie had made, and laughing at each other. At one point Nealer walked in and his eyes narrowed, 

"You had a party with out me!!? What about breakfast Paulie, did you even make me breakfast?" Paul laughed and brought him a plate. James reluctantly forgave him after he was offered extra coffee. Kris eventually drove him and Marc-Andre back to his place. Claude decided to head back to Mario's, and he was the only one there. He sat down in the living room and watched some tv. ESPN was on so he left it. Claude gaped when he saw a headline Penguin's Giroux Falls Flat From Expectations. He saw another Claude Giroux Trade a BIG Mistake for the Pens, and another Flyers Made a Great Choice in Trading Away Captain Giroux. Claude closed his eyes trying not to cry. He knew it was just the media and they were full of shit, but his self-esteem was depleted already. He felt sick, and that numbness was starting to take over again. 

Claude got up and headed toward the bathroom, he had avoided cutting since the first incident, but now the need to was overwhelming. He found his razor and yanked his shirt up. Last minute, he locked the door, and began the barrage on his stomach. This time he wasn't so careful and cautious. He made a lot of cuts and would stop after a few and hold a towel to them. He wanted to cut up his wrists too, but they were more important when he played. Claude was breathing heavily by the time he finished and his stomach hurt like hell, but somehow he felt better. Claude held a wet cloth to his stomach, and after about five minutes, the bleeding finally stopped. He dried it carefully, and then washed his face. He felt better. Claude headed to his bedroom, and flopped down on the bed. He carelessly threw the bloody towels in the basket, and grimaced as his head started to pound. Claude crawled under the covers before going to sleep.


	14. Recognizing Achievements

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Guy's Hope you enjoy the new chapter. I LOVE comments!!! I have a great idea for a new story once this one is finished I'll get that one started. Title is If We Hold On Together (I Can Pull Away From My Past) Super excited for that one as well!!

Claude woke up late the next morning, and as he stood up, his stomach burned. He pulled his shirt up curiously, and when he saw the cuts were red and irritated, he began to worry. He needed to get some cream on them. Claude slowly made his way to the bathroom, and dug some anti-bacterial cream out. He carefully put it on his stomach, and then tried to be careful as he moved so he didn't irritate the cuts even more. Claude had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. He felt like throwing up. The cuts scared him a little, if he got them infected that could be really bad. He gingerly sat down in the living room. Mario was watching tv and Sid was half asleep in a chair across from Claude. He closed his eyes, trying to ignore the pain. Claude had to go to the rink soon and he felt like shit right now. He made himself get up, and make some breakfast. He made two plates of eggs and potatoes, and took one to Sid. Claude felt good as Sid smiled at him warmly and thanked him. He sat back down and ate silently. 

 

Claude headed up to his room to get ready for practice. He got dressed and brushed his teeth and hair. Finally he headed out to the car. Sid hopped in the passenger side after Claude beeped the horn. He drove them to practice and then went to get ready. After getting all his gear on, and then taping his socks up, Claude headed out to the ice. A only a few other guys were there, and that included Marc-André Fleury. Claude skated towards where he was. Marc was almost sitting in his net as he stretched, and Claude lobbed a puck at him that went in the net. He stood up and threw the puck back at Claude, who caught it, threw it down to his stick and started up on a breakaway. Marc-André started taunting him, "Your gonna miss you fuckface, I'll beat you all day," Claude laughed at him and realized that Marc really reminded him of Hartsy. Claude grinned backhanded it over Flower's shoulder, but hit the crossbar. They messed around for a while more, and Tanger joined in when he got there. Claude had always been impressed when he saw Kris fire the puck into the net, but he never truly got to appreciate it as a teammate. Tanger's shooting motion was just excellent, not too big of a wind up, yet it got maximum velocity.

 

Dan got practice started and they were doing a 3 v 3 drill when it happened. Beau was skating and not looking where he was going, and Dan was trying to tell Scuds something, and just like that Beau was on the ground swearing and clutching his knee, and Scuds was grasping his ankle and his other knee. Claude skated over to where Beau was. "Hey, you alright?" Beau shook his head, 

"G, it's bad, I can't-help me up," Claude motioned for Tanger to come help him as he muscled Beau up. Beau leaned on him and Tanger as they took him to the locker room. Scuds was being helped along by Brooksy and Jussi behind them. 

 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

 

Claude threw his glove at Tanger in the locker room. Kris finished pulling his pants on before he hurled it back at Claude. Next thing he knew, he was getting glove washed in the face, and he wanted to dry heave. After they got dressed, Tanger walked with him to their cars, "Hey, I'm gonna sit with Paulie on the plane today, we have to talk about some D stuff before the game," Claude nodded, 

"We're grown ups dude, you can sit with whoever the hell you want," Kris shrugged,

"Just making sure," Claude playfully shoved Tanger before getting into his car, and driving back to Mario's to get his shit together. 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

Later Claude showed up at the rink to catch the team bus. His grey dress pants and jacket were contrasted by his pink shirt. His hair was covered by his favorite worn but presentable beanie. He had his earphones in, listening to music, and drowning out annoying noise on the bus. Claude sat in a seat and turned the sound up some, he felt almost like he was in some sort of zone. He didn't want to talk to anyone, he just wanted to sit there drowned in his music. A few people nudged him, but he pretended to be asleep. Eventually he did nod off and embarrassingly slump onto to Geno. Claude hadn't even known who was next to him until he woke up, his head resting on the Russian's shoulder. The guys chirped him about it, but he ignored them. The plane was the same, he was silent. The music made him just not think about anything except hockey. When they were finally at the Canadien's rink, Claude sat in the locker room for a few minutes before going to play some soccer with the guys.

Claude was sitting in his stall, just quietly taping his socks. Then he laced his skates and pulled on his shoulder pads. Finally his jersey and his helmet. They were having a late night practice and Claude was pumped. He fumbled around the puck a lot at practice, but sometimes he looked the worst the day before playing well so he wasn't worried. Marc squirted him with some water, and he laughed a bit. The next time around, his stick somehow mysteriously ended up caught in Flowers skates. Flower sat on his ass in the crease looking dumbfounded. Tanger laughed hysterically before catching his breath and saying, "You kind of had that coming Marc," practice was pretty quiet after that. He went back to the room he shared with Kris. He hopped in the shower and came out to see Kris watching some shitty movie. Kris took a shower, and Claude laid there, his ear buds back in. Everyone probably thought he was a douche bag at this point. He had barely said a word to anyone, ignoring them to instead listen to music. They ended up at a team dinner later, where Sid stood up and said he had an announcement. Sid cleared his throat, and collected his thoughts for a second, 

"Hey guys, I want to just take a moment and think about what's coming. Playoff time is soon, and I just want everyone to know that tonight is the start of a great thing for this franchise. We have been building recently, getting new players, and preparing for the playoffs, so I think it is appropriate to honor someone who has done our team proud since he started playing here. This season he has been just absolutely phenomenal. Every team needs leadership, and this player has shown that he can be a great leader on and off the ice. Tanger get up here," he said with a smile. Kris came up with a grin and a slight blush. He whispered to Sid once he was next to him, 

"What's this all about dude, your making me nervous," Mario came up from behind him, and he began to get even more nervous. 

"Kris, relax," Mario said softly. Kris shifted, and pulled his toque off to run a hand through his hair. He slipped the worn grey beanie back on, and smiled a little. Mario put a hand on Kris's shoulder, "Kris, when we drafted you, I knew you had potential, and through hard work and talent you have become one of our indispensable core players. I am so proud of you because of that, and you have stepped up into a leadership role as well. Not just by example, but you are also vocal in the locker room. Tonight, we are here to offer you the opportunity to be an Alternate Captain for the Pittsburgh Penguins. I know this is unusual, but we wanted to celebrate what you have done for this team. You can take your time with this decision or answer now if you would like to," Kris flashed an embarrassed smile, 

"Well what do you think?" Sid asked, 

"I am so flattered, thank you guys so much for this opportunity. I would love to," Mario hugged Kris, and shook his hand. Sid and him hugged quickly too, and he grinned as they handed him a jersey with an "A". Kris stood between Mario and Sid holding his jersey so the guys could get a picture. He was grinning as he took his seat again. Sid turned towards Kunitz and Orpik, 

"Hey Kuni, Brooksy, you guys don't mind Tanger wearing the "A" tomorrow do you?" both shook their head. Kris had a huge smile on his face for the rest of the night, and Claude saw him sneak out to call his family later. He felt kind of weird when Sid sat right next to him, obviously buzzed and tipsy. Sid was talking to Tanger, 

"So proud of you Tanger, your gonna win us the cup this year man. I believe in you," he said softly. Claude looked at him weird,

"Don't drool all over me Sid," he said softly when Sid started to invade his personal space. 

"Fuck you Giroux," he replied. Flower laughed, 

"I think it's time to get you home Sidney," he joked, Sid flipped Flower off, and that just made him laugh harder as he muscled the captain to a cab before Sid did something stupid. Eventually Claude decided he wanted to head back to the hotel to get some sleep. He left a tip on the table before catching a cab back to the hotel. Claude always liked coming to Montréal. It was a beautiful city. When he was back at the hotel, he looked out the window, just admiring the city for a while, and then crawled into bed to actually get a little bit of sleep.


	15. I'll Stand Up for You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!!! 
> 
> Decided I should get another chapter up before I forgot. Anyone got some directions to get picture onto a chapter because once I wrap this up I am hoping to preview my next story and get voting on the cover choices. 
> 
> I would appreciate help.  
> As always comment!!  
> Enjoy! :)

Claude was shaken awake by Kris the next morning. "How much more sleep do you fucking need? Breakfast starts in 15," 

"Tais-toi," he groaned as he rolled over and pulled the pillow over his head. Kris rolled his eyes and went to finish getting himself ready to go. Claude dragged himself out of bed a few minutes later and took a 5 minute shower. He made it down stairs for breakfast and sat between Sid and Flower. Sid looked pretty awake, but Flower was slumping in his seat. Claude gave him a knowing look, what was with the breakfast being so damn early. He sipped at a coffee and picked at some eggs and potatoes. Claude didn't feel hungry. It was too early for food. He felt tired, but anxious for the game tonight. Claude eventually made himself eat because he needed the energy for tonight. 

After breakfast the team went and talked about strategies and watched some tape. Claude went back to the room after that to get his bag packed. He took a real shower after getting all his clothes together. Claude lounged on the bed, earbuds in again, and just let the music surround him. The white towel around his waist was thin and he was starting to shiver. He got up to get some pants on. The game wasn't for hours so he pulled on some pajama pants and ordered some grilled cheese. He ate and then took his pregame nap, falling asleep to the music. He woke up a few hours later and went to get ready to go to the rink. Kris was asleep in his own bed, and Claude figured he'd give him a half hour before he would wake him up to make sure they were there on time. He went in the bathroom and wet his hair before slicking it back, and then he pulled on some dress pants and a shirt with a suit jacket. He worked on the stupid tie that didn't want to cooperate as Kris came in rubbing his eyes. Kris looked like he could use another hour of sleep. Claude laughed at him, and Kris glared. "Fuck off G," he said softly with a smile on his face.

Once Kris was finally ready and had picked out a beanie, they headed to the bus with their bags. Claude put his earbuds back in, and kept them in until he was lacing his skates up to play. He finished his stick, and then went with the guys to get ready for warm-ups. They started to warm up and Claude left his helmet on the bench. He took some warm up shots, and Flower looked good. He felt good though, and looking over at Carey Price, Claude felt some determination set in. He gave Flower a little tap on the way by and a grin. Kris and him messed around in the corner a bit, doing some wall battles and defending. Then they headed back toward the locker room to talk for a few minutes before it was time to go and play. Dan stood up in front of the room, 

"Alright guys, let's keep this going, we need to stay pumped. The playoffs are just around the corner so we need to keep our momentum. Let's play hard, and get in on the forecheck early. Let's go boys, the starting lineup is 28, 18, 36, 58, and 7. Flowers in the cage! C'mon boys let's get out their and take this game," they went out and Claude got a few taps as he walked out of the tunnel. He flipped a puck to a kid with a 28 jersey who was in the stands. Claude gave her a smile, and then finished the lap he was taking around the ice. 

Claude took his helmet off and peeked over at Kris during the anthem. He silently waited until it was done and then skated over to Kris. "I'm going to try and give you the puck on the boards. Is that cool?" Kris nodded, and Claude skated to the circle. The puck dropped and Brendan Gallagher's stick was fast but Claude's was faster. He slapped the puck back to Kris and they were off. Claude's legs felt good tonight. He felt like he was flying all, over the ice and when he deked around PK Subban and ripped a shot over the blocker of Carey Price, Claude felt like he was on top of the world. Of course he had scored many goals before, but this one felt like the start of something great. 

Claude went on to score two goals in the second period, one a great passing play by Tanger and Nealer, and the second a shot from the half boards on the power play. He felt so good until the third period. The third started great, a power play goal by Kris and a sort handed goal by Suttsy. Then it happened. Kris was digging the puck from the corner when out of no where, PK Subban slammed into him looking straight into his numbers. Kris's head banged into the glass and he crumpled down to the ice. Claude immediately threw down his gloves and charged at Subban. "You fucking asshole! You did that on purpose." He hissed at Subban,"Your scared you'll lose the Norris Trophy to him aren't you?" They started to actually throw punches after that, and Claude clobbered him. As he tackled Subban to the ice, he peeked over to see if Kris was okay. "Don't you fucking touch him," he hissed as the ref hauled him up. He looked over to see Kris sitting in the corner, being talked to by the trainer, Chris Stewart. Eventually he was helped up and shakily skated to the bench and down the runway. Claude went to the locker room after yelling at the ref. He was done for the night so he took off his gear. Claude took a shower and changed. He figured there was no point in sitting around in his gear. He went into the training room to get some ice and see how Kris was. He smiled when Kris threw a roll of athletic tape at him while he was in there annoying the trainers. 

Eventually they wrapped his arm up and kicked him out of the room to try and shut him up. He laughed at them on his way out and ran into Flower. He got a tap on the head, "Hey thanks for standing up for him out there. Subban is a dick," Claude grinned, 

"Would've done the same for you man," Some guys gave him taps when he came into the locker room. Kris came out a little while later. Claude whipped him in the ass with a towel as he walked by, "You all good?" He asked when Kris turned around. 

"A little dizzy, not sure if it's a concussion. We'll see tomorrow," Kris smiled tiredly, and threw Claude the game puck that Sid had brought him, "Here, you deserve it," Claude smiled back. 

"Hey, thanks, that means a lot. Next time I see Subban, I'm gonna fucking maul him. No way is he getting away with cheap shots like that," Kris laughed as he headed over to get the rest of the way undressed. 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

 

The next week was a blur for Claude. He scored a couple goals, Kris missed a few games but when he came back he and Sid scored a ton. Claude felt like he was slowly building confidence in himself and others confidence in him. He and Sid began to get along and they bonded over some drinks at team dinners, and just being together often at Mario's. It got to the point where Claude was best friends with Kris and Flower, but Sid was really close to him as well. The Penguins were doing so good, and Claude figured they really had a good shot in the playoffs. He was happy because Subban got 5 games for smashing Tanger. 

Claude didn't know why but he still was cutting. It wasn't like he hated himself or anything, but he felt almost hooked on the rush he got, that feeling afterwards. It was kind of like when he scored. He got this nice warm feeling inside and he felt better. That's what the cutting did for him, made him feel good for a little bit. He tried not to do it every night, but it became a struggle. After a while, nearing the end of February, Claude got himself under control. He stopped cutting. He made himself not think about it and focus on other things. That lasted for about two and a half weeks.


	16. New Faces

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, trying to update more regularly. Finished this chapter while I watched the Peguins get schooled by the Canucks (again) *sigh* lol hope you guys enjoy and as always comments are appreciated.

Claude woke up, feeling refreshed. He felt good, energized, and he was really looking forward to practice today. The playoffs were literally just around the corner. One more month. He got out of bed and got dressed before going down stairs and getting a little bit of breakfast. Sid was at the table and they ate in companionable silence. Eventually Claude looked up and said, "Hey Sid, any idea why is coach using me on 3rd still. Seriously, we could destroy if he just put Geno up with you and dropped Duper to 3rd. It could be You, Geno, Kuni, then Me, Nealer, and Juice." Sid shrugged, 

"I really don't know, lately, I haven't liked the way Dan has been coaching. What's the point in dumping the puck in and then chasing it? Why not just carry it in, I mean we have the talent," Claude nodded, 

"Hey, we should really talk to management. I mean I don't want to cost him a job, but it is business," he said softly. 

"Yeah," Sid agreed, "If we start to do horrible in the playoffs again this year, I think we should fire him right away. I'm so tired of losing. I'm going to call an all player meeting later and then if we all decide this is the right action, then we can talk to Ray," Claude felt like they were betraying Dan in some way, but he knew that it was business and really lately he was starting to realize it needed to be done. The two men got their bags together and drove to the rink in Sidney's car. When they walked in, he and Sid were talking in hushed tones still until Ray motioned for the captain. Claude headed to the locker room and changed. He went onto the ice and messed around with Geno, Nealer, and Tanger. Flower came and they chirped him for the yellow pads he was wearing. It was really funny to chirp Flower and Sid. Sid got flustered sometimes and that made it even funnier, and Flower flipped people off and swore at Claude a lot. Finally Sid came back out with a weird look on his face. Claude started to skate over to ask him about it, but Dan came out and started practice. As they were skating by each other, Claude tapped Sid with his stick and gave him a questioning look. Sid just kept skating. He seemed off as practice went on and as Claude stood in the corner with Kris waiting to a drill, they talked about it. 

"Any idea what's wrong with Sid?" He asked. Kris shook his head and then received a pass from Geno. Kris skated around the other goal and then stick handled around to shoot on Fleury. He tucked it in between Flower's pad and the post, and laughed at his best friend as he skated towards Claude. Sid passed it to Claude and he went around to try and put it in on Fleury. Once he finished his attempt, and skated over to Crosby. "Dude, what's with you?" Sid shook his head, and suddenly was up and close to Claude so no one else could hear,

"I hate trades," he said soft and sullenly, Claude dragged the captain to the corner away from prying ears and he replied in a hushed whisper, 

"Who the fuck did they trade now?" Sid had to close his eyes for a second to keep from crying, 

"Brooksy, Jussi, and Despres," Claude felt bad for Sid. He knew Brooks and Sid were pretty close, and it sucked to lose a friend so suddenly. 

"Who'd we get?" Sid took a calming breath and put on his captain face on to stop from getting emotional, 

"Erik Karlsson," Claude gaped, 

"Whose the idiot in Ottawa that agreed to that," Sid smirked a little, 

"I heard Karlsson asked for the trade, he wanted to try and win the Cup with us," Claude nodded and asked, 

"Don't tell anyone?" Sid nodded, 

"I'll bring you in when we tell the Alternates and then Brooksy, Juice, and Despres," he nodded and squeezed Sid's shoulder before skating off to hang with Kris again. Kris grinned at him. Practice was pretty uneventful except for the playful shoving match he and Kris got into at the end over who was better at beer pong. Flower stepped in and had said, 

"I can down more than either of you fuckers, and I'm great at beer pong unlike both you dumb asses," Claude laughed and he looked at Tanger. Somehow Kris got his silent message and they pulled Marc's jersey over his head and dragged him down to the goal where they trapped him in it against the boards. "Fuck you Giroux, when I get out of here, you are both dead, fucking dead," they ignored him and laughed as they headed to the locker rooms. 

 

Kris was changed first and as he walked out of the locker room, Marc was just coming in. He threw one of his pads at Claude, who started laughing his ass off. He finished changing, and pulled his favorite beanie on before heading out of the room. Sid waved him over to where he was standing with Tanger as he was heading out of the building. "Claude, we're going to go down to Ray's office and talk about the situation," Claude nodded, and he waited with them for Geno, Kuni, Brooksy, and Juice. Despres was down in the minors. When Brooks came out, Claude could see the sad look in Sid's eyes as he called him over to the group. Finally after forever Geno was the last one out, and Sid lead them towards Ray's office. Claude bumped into him playfully. 

"What were you doing in there? Huh G, what took you so long fuckface? Practicing making out with the mirror?" Geno hit him in the arm and laughed, 

"No, I was put shaving cream in your skates, hope you enjoy," Claude shook his head, and grinned. They went in the office and Ray was just finishing a phone call. Once he hung up, Sid started to talk. 

"The last few years have been good, and you guys mean the world to me, but all good things must come to an end. Brooks, Jussi, you guys are headed to Ottawa. I am going to miss both of you so much, and on behalf of the team, I wish you all the best." Jussi looked a little shocked, but Brooks just nodded. Claude gave him a pat on the back,

"You'll be fine man," Brooks nodded, 

"Ever since Tanger got the A, I knew my days were numbered, It was pretty much wondering what team is it gonna be," Claude talked to Jussi for a few minutes, and as he headed out to the parking lot with Kris, he saw Sid hugging Brooks. Claude gulped a little, that looked like what should have happened with him and Danny, but instead he had left without even a word. It was only now almost a month later that he realized what a child he had been about the whole thing. It was just, Philadelphia was where he wanted to be. He wanted to play there, retire there, maybe even coach there. Claude shook his head, that didn't matter now, the Penguins were his team now. Philly didn't want him, and Pittsburgh did. This was his new home.


	17. Slipping up Sucks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys   
> I'd love some comments 
> 
> Thanks!!

Claude was in his room, half asleep in bed thinking about the trade when his phone started buzzing. He picked up, and Kris was on the other end, "Claude where the fuck are you?" He whispered in French. 

Claude was confused, "Quoi?" He murmured groggily.

Kris answered quickly, "Game in a couple hours, the bus is leaving in 15, get your ass up and to the rink before Dan notices you're not here," all Claude could think was shit, just shit. How did he forget, they were going to Philly. They hug up and he pulled a suit on quickly, and a beanie to cover up his fucking bed head. Then he grabbed the bag he had packed the other day. He ran out the door, a comb between his teeth, and as he sped towards the rink, he combed his hair. Finally he was there with 5 minutes to spare. He snuck on the bus and sat next to Sid.

 

Erik was in Philly by game time, and Claude couldn't help but be jealous about the way he was welcomed into the locker room. Guys were chirping him, and passing to him, and acting like nothing happened. Claude tried not to feel sorry for himself but it was hard. Life was just unfair. He made it to game time, and after his first shift he felt a little better, but it got ugly not long after that. Sid got rammed into the corner boards, and people were fighting and shoving, and his old team mates were plastering him to the boards every chance they got. Claude knocked Hartsy on his ass, and then smashed Schenn. That made Couts angry, so he got some nasty hits. Claude didn't realize how annoying it actually was to play the Flyers. After the first period, Sid was done for the game with a minor injury that they didn't want to aggravate more, Kris and Erik both had power play goals and Claude was a minus one. He felt like shit. The second was okay, but the third was what really got him angry, they were up 3-2 with a goal by Geno. Only six minutes left in the game and James hit Jake pretty hard. The ref called roughing, and as he dragged James to the penalty box and gave him an explanation, all you could hear was James say the stupidest thing Claude had heard all night, "What is violence anyways?"

A couple guys laughed, but Claude looked at Kris and shook his head. They got an extra two for that dumb comment and the Flyers scored on the second power play. Claude was beyond mad. He threw his stick at the wall in the runway as he walked down, 5-3, James was a dumb ass. While they were interviewing James, Claude walked by and threw a dictionary at him. 

"You're a fucking idiot," was all he said to James before going to get a shower. He sat sulking in his stall with a towel around his waist. Kris came over, dressed, and with a small smile on his face, 

"Let it go G, it's fine," 

Claude shook his head. "Fucking hate losing,"

Kris laughed a little, "Me too man," was all he said. Sid came over and sat next to them, he was sulking too. 

"Hate the Flyers," Sid muttered,

Claude nodded in agreement and smiled at the irony of what he was about to say, "I never realized how bad it was to play those assholes," They sat there until Claude started shivering and finally put his suit back on. They started to head off to a bar, but Claude ran into Danny on the way out of the arena. He tagged along with him, Sid, Tanger, Flower, and a few of the other guys. Claude had an itching need to cut, he tried to ignore it, and he had a couple drinks. The guys were laughing and joking in the booth around him. He was oddly silent, and Danny bumped his shoulder a little. Claude faintly heard Danny's voice, "Sorry Danny, did you say something?" He asked. 

"Claude, are you alright?" His friend repeated.

Claude sighed, "What? Oh yeah, I'm good, just a little tired," 

Danny shrugged, "Ok, just making sure, you're acting weird," Claude's head was pounding, and he still had that itching, burning need to cut. He couldn't think of an excuse to leave until Danny said he was tired. Claude suggested they head back and hang in his hotel room. Claude got some beers out of the mini-fridge. It was just him and Danny. Kris was still out with Flower and Sid getting shit faced so they could forget about the stupid loss. He handed one to Danny along with a takeout menu and excused himself to the bathroom. Claude figured it was a mix of the trade, the bad loss to Philly, and alcohol, but whatever the reason he just had to cut. He pulled out one of his socks where he kept an emergency razor blade just incase he couldn't help himself. He told himself it would be just one cut, and then it would be over and he would feel better. Claude made one close to his hip bone, it was small only one inch long. It started bleeding, and he held a towel to it, relishing in the afterglow, but it didn't stop. Soon his towel was soaked through, so he grabbed another one, panicking, he pressed harder but it just kept bleeding. Danny knocked on the door, "G do you want Chinese or Pizza?" 

Claude scrunched his eyes closed.


	18. Don't Try and Change Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys. I hope you enjoy!! This story is so frustrating sometimes and so I donMt update regularly. Thanks to anyone who had stuck with it this far. I love comments!! Please leave me some!

Flash Back: He handed one to Danny along with a takeout menu and excused himself to the bathroom. Claude figured it was a mix of the trade, the bad loss to Philly, and alcohol, but whatever the reason he just had to cut. He pulled out one of his socks where he kept an emergency razor blade just incase he couldn't help himself. He told himself it would be just one cut, and then it would be over and he would feel better. Claude made one close to his hip bone, it was small only one inch long. It started bleeding, and he held a towel to it, relishing in the afterglow, but it didn't stop. Soon his towel was soaked through, so he grabbed another one, panicking, he pressed harder but it just kept bleeding. Danny knocked on the door, "G do you want Chinese or Pizza?" Claude scrunched his eyes closed,"Whatever you want Danny," 

 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

Danny must have heard the wavering in his voice because he asked,"Claude are you okay?" 

Claude was too scared to lie, "No Danny, I need some help." 

Danny opened the door and gasped, stepping back in shock,"What the fuck! What happened?" 

Claude shoved a clean towel into Danny's hands,"Shut up and help me," Danny pressed the towel onto the wound and helped Claude out to the parking lot. He hailed a cab and once they were on their way, Danny focused on trying to slow the bleeding. 

"Calm down Claude," he said softly to the man who was just sitting there murmuring 'holy shit' every few seconds. "Freaking out isn't helping," Claude hobbled into the emergency room, and a doctor saw him promptly. As he was being stitched up, he gave some shit story about running into a corner of some glass table that was chipped. The doctor either bought it or didn't really care enough to inquire more about the accident because he stopped asking questions. Everything was alright after that, and they headed back to the hotel room, where Kris was laying in bed, laughing his head off at some stupid movie. Claude ordered some Chinese takeout for the three of them, and Claude lounged on his bed watching tv, and Tanger was over on his own bed. "Claude, I'm going to go wash up. I've still got blood on my hands," Danny said as he disappeared into the bathroom he called out, "Do either of you have an extra dress shir-" he trailed off, "Claude?" 

The ginger was paying attention to the tv and he absently replied,"Quoi," 

Danny's voice sounded weird,"Claude come here," Claude sighed dramatically, but got up and headed to the bathroom. He was about to crack a joke, but then he saw Danny was standing by the sink, a bloody razor blade in his hand, "What the fuck were you thinking?" He asked softly. Claude felt like he was going to throw up, no one was supposed to find out. He pulled door shut, and talked in hushed whispers. 

"I needed to feel something Danny," 

Danny gave him a hard look,"You need counseling Claude, not a razor blade," 

Claude was getting angry,"What was I supposed to do? Everyone just ignored me except Tanger, I had no self esteem after I was traded. My life sucked for a while, and I needed something," 

Danny shook his head,"This is never the way to go," 

"Don't tell anyone, please, this is the first time I've done this in a while. I'm getting under control," Claude begged. 

Danny thought for a few seconds before nodding. "Ok it's our secret. If I find out about this anymore, it won't be though. Now go get me a dress shirt that looks decent. Actually, ask Kris if he has one, I don't want to wear your ugly clothes," They ate take out, and the rest of the night was easy going and normal. Claude cleaned up the room and packed his bag. They were going to Nashville tomorrow. He fell asleep finally after tossing and turning for hours.

 

………………………….………………………….…………………….…………………………

The next morning, Claude woke up in time for breakfast. He ate and then got his bags on the bus before plugging in some headphones. He sat next to Flower on the bus, and the goalie was messing around the whole ride. Claude half wanted to laugh at how worked up he got Sid, but he also wanted to punch him so he would shut up. Claude wanted to sleep. "Shut the fuck up Flower," he said eventually. 

"Oh fuck off Giroux," was the reply he got. Claude flipped Flower off before closing his eyes, and turning up the volume on his phone. He eventually did fall asleep, catching up from the restless night he had. When he woke up, Sid was next to him. He was playing PSP, so Claude closed his eyes, pretending to be asleep, but Sid had already noticed him. 

"Hey G," 

Claude opened his eyes, "Hey, where'd Flower go?" 

Sid gave a quirky smile as he pushed a controller into Claude's hands, "Thought I'd rescue you from his insanity," that got a laugh out of Claude. He played some PSP for a while. Sid got destroyed, and Claude did pretty well even though Kris won most of the time. When they got on the plane, he sat next Kris, and behind Sid and Flower. When they finally made it to Nashville, they went to the arena for a light skate before the game. Kris, Flower and Claude raced around the rink, trying to trip each other. Flower hit Claude in the back of the legs with his stick as he skated by the crease. He and Kris trapped Flower in his goal again before racing off to the locker room, laughing their heads off as Flower screamed and swore at them in both French and English. 

"Tais-toi Marc! Stop acting like a big baby!" Kris yelled mockingly as they stepped off the ice. 

Claude snickered, and whispered,"You wanna fill his shoes with shaving cream? Duper usually has some," 

Tanger laughed. "He might throw a fit if we keep this up," Claude smiled as they headed in to change. Marc came in a few minutes later and he was so mad. Claude figured he'd get over it, so he whipped Marc in the ass with his towel. He got nothing more than a glare, so he hit Sid's huge ass to get a reaction. The embarrassing noise that he got made him laugh, and Marc started to laugh too. Kris patted Sid's shoulder, "You are so easy," he said with a smile. Claude laughed even harder at the glare that hardened the captain's face. Sid threw his gloves at them before stalking off to the showers. They got in the bus that took them back to the hotel. They raced up the stairs to Marc's room and sat on his bed drinking and playing Socom on Play Station. Marc ordered them some pizzas. 

"I think I might get my own place this offseason. It's kinda weird to have you guys over to Mario's randomly, and if I wanted to pick up a girl or something… it's just too awkward. How is Sid still there?" Claude said and Kris grinned, 

"He has no life, he's a hockey robot remember." He said jokingly. 

Marc laughed and added, "I don't know if he could pick up a girl if he tried," Claude shook his head,

"Maybe Captain Serious has some smooth moves hidden up his sleeves," he said with a grin. They lounged around silently for a few minutes and Claude grabbed another slice of pepperoni pizza. He took a bite and then stretched his legs out on Marc's bed. Marc and Kris were on the floor below him. Claude took a drink before kicking at a pillow that fell off the bed onto Marc. A few seconds later the same pillow hit him right in the face. He grinned cheekily at Marc, who threw down the control and climbed on the bed to attack him. He got hit with the pillow again. Claude was laughing so hard as Marc wrestled him. He almost fell off the bed, and Kris shook his head at the two, 

"You guys are weird," He said as he turned off the game. 

"You know you want to come help me get this bastard back," Flower said, and Kris laughed, and helped Marc pin Claude down and give him a noogie.

"What the fuck!" Came the exclamation, and Marc turned to see Sid walking in. 

"Hey Sid, come help us," Marc exclaimed. Sid shook his head at the and set his bag down on his bed. Marc got off of Claude and jumped Sid from behind, "You two, get your asses over here to help me," Claude laughed and laid on the bed panting, trying to catch his breath. Sid got Marc off of him, "You guys are no fun," Marc complained as he glared at Claude and Kris who were still sitting on his bed. Sid pulled his phone out of the bag and shook his head, 

"Another trade," was all he said. 

Claude sat up,"Who?" 

Sid grimaced,"You're not going to like this," 

Claude gulped, management wouldn't trade Kris or Marc would they?


	19. I Hate Goodbyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everybody, hope you enjoy the new chapter. Don't forget to comment ☺️

"Another trade," was all he said. 

Claude sat up, "Who?" 

Sid grimaced,"You're not going to like this,"

Claude gulped, management wouldn't trade Kris or Marc would they?  
……………………………………………………

"Gibby and draft picks for Patric Hornqvist," Claude closed his eyes and pulled his own phone out to text Brian. 

'Sry about the trade' was all he sent. A few seconds later his phone sounded with a reply,

'You heard? :(' 

Claude felt so bad for the younger man, but it was part of the job description, 'I know the feeling' Claude sent. They texted for a while before Claude and Kris headed back to the room for a pregame nap. They slept for a hour and then headed to the rink. Claude was kicking the soccer ball around with Kris, Beau, Geno, Kuni, and Sid when Patric Hornqvist came in. Sid shook his hand, and Claude smiled at him. He played some soccer with them for a while before it was time to get dressed. Claude spent a half hour in the stick room making two sticks just the way he wanted them. He pulled his pants on and taped his socks. Claude sat in his stall with Geno pulling his elbow pads on next to him. He caught a glove that was chucked at him by Flower. 

 

"Better play good fucker, can't trap me in my goal during a game," was the explanation he got alongside a cheeky grin when Marc came to get the much needed piece of equipment back. Claude shook his head fondly and laced up his skates. Once he was fully dressed, Claude lazily made his way out to the players lobby for a drink. Dan talked for a few minutes and then they warmed up, but pretty soon it was game time. Geno started the game with Nealer and Downie and then Kris and Paulie started on D. The game started well, three goals in the first. Claude scored a highlight reel one timer off a saucer by Tanger who scored a goal of his own. Nealer had a goal on the powerplay. The second period sucked. Addsy went down with an injury early, so Claude got thrown out on the penalty kill. He had killed penalties before, but it had been a while. Olli made a nice poke check that knocked the puck into the slot, but Tanger's diving sweep with the stick knocked into the corner away from Shea Weber. Kris got up fast and wristed the puck down into the no play zone. Roman Josi had two steps on Claude as they went to get the puck. He pinned Josi to the boards, and turned to get the puck. He fell down as he was bumped from behind, and his ankle was hit with Josi's skate. He got up trying to get back into the play, but his leg exploded with pain. He collapsed down to the ice again, and put his head in his hands for a second. He tried to drag himself to the bench, and he banged his stick on the ice. The ref was above him, his hand on Claude's shoulder, 

"You okay?" He asked, Claude shook his head. 

"Holy shit," he muttered to himself He couldn't stop thinking about Erik Karlsson's Achilles Tendon injury. Claude was scared, and as Chris Stewart came over, and lifted his leg up, he closed his eyes. He felt the towel being pressed up against the blood seeping from his sock, and his leg hurt like fuck.


	20. Sid has a Huge Ass

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everybody. I really hope you enjoy this chapter. Please Comment. 
> 
> Just wondering:
> 
> I am in the process of working another story idea out in my head. I wrote an excerpt of the story and it is about Kris Letang and Luc Bourdon. If people are interested, please comment and I'll get that little tie hit up with the next chapter. If people like it, I am planning on writing a full story. It's going to be called The Crimson Stained Ice.
> 
> Enjoy!!

"Holy shit," he muttered to himself He couldn't stop thinking about Erik Karlsson's Achilles Tendon injury. Claude was scared, and as Chris Stewart came over, and lifted his leg up, he closed his eyes. He felt the towel being pressed up against the blood seeping from his sock. He recognized Kris and Sid from their voices as they tried to calm him down and helped him to the Nashville tunnel through all his hyperventilating. Kris, Sid, Chris, and Shea Weber practically carried him to the trainers. Sid patted his should once he was laid down on the table, and he left to go finish the game. Shea Weber left, but Kris stayed for a little while, helping to calm Claude down. He laughed and joked about Sid's ass, and Geno's stupid pranks, but Claude felt nauseous. Chris finished getting his equipment off and examining his leg.

"Looks like your definitely going to need stitches, and we need an MRI to check out your Achilles Tendon okay?" Claude nodded a little, and Kris squeezed his shoulder, 

"Kris, go play, don't worry about me, it's fine," Kris nodded, and headed back out to finish the game. Claude was obviously done for the night so once they stitched him up and stopped the bleeding and did the fucking MRI that took forever, he wanted to go back to the locker room to get changed. He was pissed because they wouldn't tell him what was with his leg. He didn't care if it took 24 fucking hours to assess the damages from the pictures, he wanted to know now. He had both his skates off, and he was sitting on the trainer's table. Claude's flip flops were in the Pens locker room, and he really didn't feel like standing up. He sat there trying figure out the best way to get back when there was a soft knock on the door. Flower walked in with his flip flops and helped Claude back to the locker room. Tanger and Sid were waiting there for him with an extra pair of Sid's dress pants for him. He gave them a look. Flower laughed under his breath as Kris explained himself,

"Sid has a giant ass so you know, his pants are big, and I figured they would be easier and more comfortable to put on your leg," Sid rolled his eyes and pushed the pants into Claude's hands. Claude felt a little better after Kris's stupid joke. When he pulled the pants on and Sid tried to help him with his dress shirt his mood went sour again. He shook his head, 

"I can dress myself," he mumbled softly. Claude didn't like feeling helpless. Kris did help him tie his shoes though, because he had to be so gentle with his leg. After the damn plane ride that took forever, Sid carried Claude's bag out to his car and put it in the trunk. He wanted to protest that he could drive himself but he was so tired. Kris and Flower helped him to the car and then into the passenger seat. He thanked them, and Sid drove him back Mario's. Claude opened the car door, and there was Mario waiting for him,

"Claude, how's your leg?" He asked softly, Claude grimaced, 

"Not so good, they're still examining the MRI," he nodded and helped Claude out of the car. He and Sid helped him into the house and to the couch. Nathalie and Mario fussed over him for a few minutes, bringing him ice and pillows and some food. He smiled and thanked them. Sid stayed in the living room with Claude where they spent the night so stairs wouldn't have to be a problem. When he woke up in the middle of the night and had to use the bathroom, he pushed him self up and hobbled down the hall, determined to do something for himself. He had trouble sleeping after that so he went to the kitchen for some water and then laid on the couch. Claude eventually did fall asleep after a few hours of laying in the dark, staring at the ceiling. He watched tv the next morning and ate before getting up and slowly making his way to the car for practice. Claude felt a little better putting weight on his leg, but it still wasn't good. 

 

A little while later, Claude was sitting on the table in the training room. Chris was looking at his leg, and showing him what they saw on the MRI. "Ok, good new and bad news," he said while pointing the things on the picture. "Your Achilles Tendon didn't get cut through so that is really good. The bad news is it was slightly cut here on the side. Depending, after the season you might need it rehabbed or surgery would be very unlikely but a possibility," Claude sighed in relief, and thought of something, 

"Chris, how long until I can play again?" The trainer was carrying over some tape, 

"When you feel good, I think your leg is in a good enough condition for you to play," Claude nodded happily, and Chris taped his leg so he could go work out if he wanted. He felt better as he stood up, and he limped out to the weight room. Claude put on some shorts and sneakers before riding one of the stationary bikes. He got a Gatorade and a protein shake afterwards and went out to watch the guys finish up practice. 

 

Sid and Kris skated by the bench and made faces at him. He squirted some water at them as they skated away. Claude went to Kris's after practice and they watched some basketball. Claude lounged on the couch, and fell asleep after a while. Kris shook him awake a few hours later, "What the fuck did you even do today? How are you tired?" Claude threw a pillow at Kris as he got up and sat at the island in Kris's kitchen. They ate some food and Claude played some Socom with Kris after that and obviously got his ass whooped. As he was leaving he yelled over his shoulder, 

"Hey Kris, no one is going to want to play video games with you anymore. You beat everyone," Kris laughed, 

"Nah you're just shit at that game, but at least you're not as bad as Sid," Claude laughed and headed back to Mario's. He managed to drag himself up the stairs, and then fucked around on his phone for a while before going to sleep.


	21. Preview for New Story

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hey guys. Long time no see! Hopefully I'll get back to updating closer together. I went through a really rough writers block for a while and then life got in the way. I have a preview here for a story I am calling The Crimson Stained Ice. Warnings it involves child abuse, depression, and some angst, there will be a full set of warnings if I post the story. It's not done yet but I am pretty far along. If you like this preview I will post the first few chapters with in a few weeks here. I hope you enjoy! 
> 
> If you like it leave a comment below! :)

Preview to The Crimson Stained Ice by KrisLetang

He stared at the water. There was a lot of noise around him, but his world was silent as dropped his mini duffle bag. "Hey Kris," who's voice was that he thought, Sid was the name that popped up in his head. He gave a weak wave toward the speaker. 

"Get in here Tanger!" Brooks called. Kris truthfully didn't even know why he was here. He hated water. He was frozen by the side. Kris's heart was pounding so loud in his chest he was sure everyone could hear it. 

"Tanger?" No answer. Sergei swam over by him, "Kris are you ok?" He nodded, it was a complete lie, but he wouldn't let himself show weakness, show them that he wasn't worth their time.

"I'm fine, just still in shock that we won he added with a fake smile and a laugh. He slowly grabbed the hem of his v-neck shirt and pulled it up over his head slowly revealing his toned muscles. He set it in his bag after slowly folding it. The grey shirt hung halfway out of is duffle. He untied his grey converse, and then as he stood on the side of the pool and smoothed out his white swim trunks with purple Hawaiian flowers that he had just bought for today, he didn't hear the footsteps behind him. 

He only realized that someone was there when he felt their hands on his shoulder blades. Before he could figure out what was going on, he was falling into the water. He came up, already panicking. He grabbed the side of the pool, taking a deep breath, trying to fight off the images that were flashing in his mind. *darkness everywhere, he couldn't see* Kris took another shaky breath 

*Water running, he couldn't move* the fear was building up in his chest, tears welling in his eyes. *He couldn't breathe, water everywhere, it felt like someone was punching him. He was struggling, clawing at the strong arms that kept him there* Kris was shaking and he couldn't stay there any longer. He pulled himself up out of the water and ignored the questions from his teammates and Marc's concerned voice. He picked his stuff up and brushed by the goalie who obviously was the one who pushed him in. He found the bathroom, and toweled off. He was struggling to control his breathing as his hair dripped water onto his face. 

Kris could still fell the iron grip that kept him in place, the ache in his chest as he tried to breath. *Kris was on his hands and knees, sucking in breath greedily, he fell on his side as he was kicked in the stomach, 

"Be in the backyard in five minutes and don't let this happen again boy," was all the deep voice said before disappearing from sight. * Kris was huddled in the corner of Mario's bathroom dripping and sobbing, "Arrête," he murmured, "S'il te plaît, arrête," he continued to cry and ignored the knocking on the door. "Luc," he said softly, digging for his phone. He hadn't done this for months, but as his hands dialed the familiar number, he felt safer. It beeped a few times and he got some shit message about a disconnected number, "Non," he murmured, "I need to hear your voice, Luc," he spit out frantically into the phone, "Luc," he sobbed. Kris sobbed for his best friend, he sobbed for a man that had always been there for him, but most of all Kris sobbed for the only man he had ever trusted. "Tu me manques, Luc, I need you,"


	22. Didn't Your Mom Ever Teach You That's Rude?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone likes it! Please comment! :)

The next day Claude felt better and decided he would try some practice. At the rink after had all his gear on and he headed on the ice. Claude tried skating a little bit, and it hurt a little, but he pushed on. As he was rounding the corner, he grinned but then he lost his balance. Lucky for him Geno happened to be there and made sure Claude didn't land on his face. He clapped a hand on the ginger's shoulder, "You need be more careful no? If not I be picking you up off ice all day," Claude rolled his eyes, 

"Oh fuck off Geno, don't you have someone else to bug. Why don't you go mess with Sid," Geno laughed and tripped Claude on his way past. Claude sat on the ice until Marc came over and pulled him up,

"What too lazy to stand up?" Claude smiled fondly, and jumped when Kris tapped him on the ass with the blade of his stick. 

"Hey G," Flower started snickering and Claude all of the sudden was worried, 

"Tanger, what are you guys planning?" Kris had and innocent look on his face and that scared Claude even more. Flower grabbed him and spun him around. There was his fucking tshirt, jeans, and his converse hanging with the damn banners. Claude spun back and glared at the goalie. "Well thanks Flower, you're a fucking asshole," he accused. Flower gave him and incredulous look,

"Who? Me? What makes you think I did it?" Claude raised his eyebrows,

"Are you kidding me Flower? When have you not been the one to do it," Flower just started laughing, and then skated away. Claude finished practice and eventually the rink manager got his clothes down for him. Afterward he talked with Chris. They decided it would be a game time decision if he played tonight. He went home with Sid and lounged on the couch sulking about his leg. He went to sleep in the middle of a shitty basketball game, and was shaken awake by Sid fifteen minutes before they had to leave. Claude rinsed off in the shower for no other reason than to wake himself up, and then he quickly combed his hair and pulled on one of the new suits he had bought after to coming to Pittsburgh. Once he deemed himself presentable and Sid banged on the for the tenth time and threatened to, "drive away and leave your lazy ass here," Claude came out of the bathroom and stuck his tongue out at the grumpy captain. Sid just glared and left to start the car. 

 

At the rink, he tried to skate, but his leg felt like shit still, so he had to spend his night sulking in the press box. Watching Tanger murder everyone (as usual) wasn't as fun tonight. Claude wanted to be out there, fighting beside his teammates. Fighting beside his best friends. Instead he was stuck up here in a stupid suit, and stupid dress shoes and his skates were down stairs. Worst of all, people kept trying to cheer him up and serve him a drink or something. He sat in the corner and snapped at anyone who decided they were gonna mess with him. When Mario sat next to him, Claude bit his cheek so he wouldn't say anything stupid. "Claude, I know how you feel," Claude relaxed and nodded, 

"I just want to be out there to protect them and contribute," Mario nodded understandingly, 

"I know that feeling so well, it sucks, but you will be out there soon, just remember that," Claude nodded appreciatively. He took the Fiji water that Mario offered him, but stayed in the corner seat he was occupying. At the end of the game, 30 seconds left, and they were down 2-1. Claude thought for sure the puck was going into the empty net, but Kris, who had the only goal for the Pens (on the powerplay) dove out and tipped the puck just wide of the goal. He went and collected it behind the net, fighting off the fore checker. As he weaved his way through the neutral zone, Claude found himself on his feet. Tanger's stick flew as he undressed the defender, and then the quick flick of his wrist gave Bobrovsky no chance. The puck sailed into the top corner, and Claude cheered, and grinned. Overtime was great, and Geno scored the game winner. Finally it was time to go home, and as he clapped his hand on Kris's shoulder, he realized how tired he was. Flower came in looking happy with himself, and Claude couldn't help himself. As Flower looked at the tv, and started taking his pads off absently, Claude stole his clothes, and hid them in Sid's locker. Kris laughed and got dressed. Flower came out of the shower and went to his locker. Claude went over and started talking to Duper so he would look less guilty. 

 

"Ok, which one of you bitches stole my clothes?" Claude stifled a laugh, and Marc kept talking. "I'm serious, if you don't tell me, I'll just go out there naked," Claude had to bite his lip to keep from bursting. What a nightmare PR would have if Marc pulled some dumb ass move like that. He would love to hear that conversation, Penguins at a Loss-Goalie Marc-André Fleury Runs Outside of Locker Room Naked. What a headline that would be. When Flower finally did find the clothes in Sid's locker, Claude could barely keep quiet as they argued about how the clothes got there. Finally Marc stomped off and got dressed. Claude and Kris grabbed some pizza and once coach finished his post game talk, they headed back to Marc's where Claude ended up staying the night.

 

The next day they had off, so when Claude woke up with a twinge in his neck, he didn't care that much. He woke up before both Kris and Marc and struggled with the coffee machine. Once he had some brewing, Claude searched Marc's fridge for food. There was literally one egg in the carton and a little bit of milk. When the smell of coffee finally coaxed Marc and Kris to the kitchen he shook his head at the goalie, "You have one egg, how long has it been since you went shopping?" Marc shrugged, 

"I wouldn't eat that egg if I was you. I usually eat out, no idea how long that's been in there," Claude made a face at him, 

"Dude that's gross," Kris mumbled from where he was sipping his coffee sleepily. Claude nodded in agreement, and threw his phone at Marc, 

"Whatever, just get me some food, I'm hungry," he whined. Marc rolled his eyes, but ordered food anyways. When it finally got there, they ate and played some video games before Claude decided he wanted to drag Marc and Kris shopping with him. He needed some new clothes. Somehow Claude got them out to the store, and while he actually looked for clothes, Kris and Marc had a competition to see who could find the ugliest shirt for him. They took pictures and put them on Twitter and Instagram, and Claude just put up with them. He bought a new grey dress shirt and Kris picked him out a "decent" collection of ties because apparently all of his were hideous. Claude got a new pair of sneakers and Marc picked him out a scarf. He bought three new beanies, a soft gold one that matched their jerseys, and knitted grey one, and dark blue one. Kris got a maroon beanie, and Marc got a black one. He bought two pea coats at Marc's insistence. A black one and a grey one. Apparently Marc and Kris both owned them and Claude needed one too. His argument consisting of, "What the fuck Marc, are we twelve? The Frenchies in Pea Coats Club?" was defeated when Marc laughed at him and put them in the cart.

 

Finally they went and had some smoothies and lunch where Claude ended up signing some autographs and Tanger took some selfies with people. Flower signed a couple shirts and took a few pictures also. They finally went home after spending a half hour in the park, laying in the grass and throwing chunks of dirt at each other. Flower was being an annoying fucker the whole way home and making stupid faces at him so he told Marc to fuck off. "Don't make ugly faces like that, it might just freeze," he teased, slapping away Marc's hand that was pulling on his curls, 

"Speaking from experience Gingeroux?" Claude felt a smile pull at the edges of his lips, 

"Shut up you little shit," Then Marc and Kris started talking about some shit that had to do with defense and Claude zoned out. He absently was dicking around on his phone, and when he heard his name. He hadn't heard the question and wasn't paying attention, 

"Quoi?" Was the first thing that came out of his mouth and when Kris mockingly replied, 

"Didn't your Mom ever teach you that's rude?" He grinned, and when Marc added,

"Maybe we should tell her Kris, call up G's Maman, tell her how rude her son is," he realized how much he missed Ottawa, he wanted to go home. Kris and Marc were laughing at him, their conversation forgotten, and Claude knew one thing. As soon as the season was done, he was going home.


	23. No One Cares Bout Fucking Gluten But Sid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I know this is really short so I'm sorry. This is where I got stuck for a while so some of the stuff after this I'm not entirely happy with. Sorry if it's really bad. 
> 
> Enjoy and comment! :)

Claude finally got cleared to play the day of their game against Buffalo, and he figured that was a nice easy game to get himself eased back into play. He did well, assisting on Geno's powerplay goal, Tanger's goal, and Olli's goal. Kuni scored also, as well as Nealer, Horny, and Erik. Flower only let in one, so the night was good. Coach was happy, patting everyone on the back, Mario came in, talked with Sid some, and Claude left to go back to the house. He flopped down in bed, and got on his laptop. It had been a while since he had talked to Danny. He sent him a quick text before pulling up some stupid movie to waste his time on. He didn't feel like drinking tonight, so he absently watched the movie and texted Danny all night. Flower shot him a few texts consisting of,

Where did u fuck off to?, I know you didn't get laid, and U should come do shots with us. Claude shook his head and texted back, 

Talk to me when either ur sober or we are both drunk. Marc left him alone after that and then he fell asleep with the lights still on. 

………….…………………………………………….…………………………….………..……..

The rest of the regular season was routine, a few road games, sandwiched by two home games, and then it was time for the playoffs. After everything, Claude was a little disappointed that the Islanders were their first round opponents. They were pretty easy during the season, so he wasn't too worried. Kris was named a finalist for the Norris Trophy, Hart Trophy, and a few other awards the week right before the first game of the series. Sid was a finalist for the Art Ross and the Ted Lindsay. Claude was up for nothing this year. He didn't really care that much though. 

As the first game approached, Claude started getting nervous. He had this aching, burning need to do well, he just had to. He wanted to dominate everything. The day before the game, Claude hung out at Marc's apartment. Sid was there and so was Kris. They laid around in the living room watching baseball. Claude was watching the game, half asleep, and Sid was bitching about the food in the kitchen,

"Shut up Sid, no one cares about fucking gluten except you," he announced finally. Marc laughed at the look on Sid's face. Kris just shook his head and threw a pillow at Claude from where he was lounging on a chair. Then a smile broke out on the defenseman's face, 

"Oh yeah, don't eat the egg in there, it's all Flower has!" Claude laughed and Marc grinned a little, 

"How do you even live, one fucking expired egg in your fridge," Sid commented as he sat down. Tanger snorted. 

"Not everyone here is a nutrition freak Sid," Marc said in defense of his empty fridge.

"Yeah but we also don't all have an expired egg in our fridge," Claude piped up from the couch. It was nice, making fun of Flower and Sid. There was a nice ease to it all, a great way to stay loose and laughing before the playoffs. He laughed as Flower wrestled him, and they knocked all the cushions off the couch. 

"Don't ruin my couch, you little fucker," Marc said with a smile. Claude responded by shoving the goalie off, and pinning him down. Marc laughed as Sid and Tanger jumped on Claude's back, and then they all sat up, Claude and Marc out of breath, and laughed. After a while, Claude knew that he needed to get home. Tomorrow was when it mattered. Everything that had gone on before-irrelevant, it was time to make it count. He gave Kris a hug, and Marc slapped him on the back. He drove home with Sid, and then went to bed.


	24. Round One: NYI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Again there are definitely things I am not entirely happy with, so sorry if it's not very good writing, I hope you guys like it. 
> 
> Comments make my day. Even if they are critical just please no flames. Thanks and enjoy!
> 
> By the way: The Crimson Stained Ice is up and there is a chapter posted besides the preview I shared with you guys for anyone who is interested.

When Claude woke up the next morning, he got right to his game day routine, a nice breakfast, a quick run, and nap, a movie, pregame meal, another nap, and finally a shower to clear his head before going to the rink. He played some soccer with the guys, and Marc wrestled with him for a few minutes in the lounge. Finally he went to get dressed in the locker room, and as he sat down and started to put on his shin pads, he realized he was happy. Happiness was an emotion that had been rare for him in the short time he had been in Pittsburgh but he felt better than he had in months. He pulled on his elbow pads and then stood up. He got some tape and taped his stick and his socks before throwing the roll at Tanger who was calling for it. Once the rest of his equipment was on they went out to warm up. Claude left his helmet in the locker room, and when he was on the ice, he gave Flower some nice shots to warm him up. Marc looked really focused. In the tunnel right before the game he tapped Kris and Marc and said softly, "No matter what happens out there, we need to be a team. We need to fight for each other," the other two nodded, 

"We've got your back," Kris replied.

"We need to have everybody's back," Claude said seriously.

"Try to get guys to box them out, but most importantly, let's play together and leave everything on the ice," Marc added in agreement with a smile. As they skated onto the ice, there were cheers everywhere. As the Star Spangled Banner was sung, Claude moved his feet, and then it was face off time. He tied up the stick of John Tavares and kicked the puck to Kris. The Islanders started hitting quickly and before Claude knew it, he was holding onto Okposo's jersey and Steve was fighting with Cizekas. Chances were traded before James got pissed and took a horrible tripping penalty. They killed half of it before Blake was in the box for a fucking high stick call that was shit. The Islanders converted on the 5 on 3 with a snap shot by John Tavares to start the scoring. By the end of the first Chris had tied it up off of a bullet pass from Tanger that he just wristed into the top corner. In the locker room, Claude sat in his stall, shirt off, and a towel around his neck. He was beat and it was only first intermission. Kris was limping around in the corner trying to walk off the shot he had absorbed into his foot, "Kris, you okay man? Need me to beat anyone up?" He said with a grin. Kris smiled a little at Claude, 

"Nah G, I'm okay just give a few minutes. Besides I doubt you could take anyone out there," he laughed and threw one the of the bags of ice he had gotten for his sore calf at Kris. The defenseman smiled and sat down where he took his skate off and iced his foot to numb it. Coach started taking about not taking penalties, and Claude was fucking happy because guys were being ridiculous out there, taking every penalty in the book. 

"Guy's it's okay to defend a teammate, but dumb ass penalties are not something we need right now," he said loudly.

Marc nodded and added, "I'd appreciate no more 5 on 3 situations," guys got a little laugh out of that one. By the time they had to go back out, Kris was alright, and Claude felt refreshed after some Gatorade chews and some more water. He gave Marc a tap on the way out, and smiled at him, "Just focus on the next shot," he said softly. Marc nodded, 

"Yeah," he replied, "Don't you dare take a penalty you little shit," he added with a grin. Claude stuck his tongue out, 

"I'm not stupid," Flower shook his head, 

"I don't know G," he hit Flower in the pads with his stick, 

"Shut up and get back into your goalie mode," Flower punched him before heading out to the ice. Kris hung back and walked with Claude, who felt good about this period. They joked around lightheartedly and when Claude stepped onto the ice for the face off, he was ready to get something going. Claude and Pascal seemed have something, and after a few shifts, before they knew it, they had drawn a penalty. Calvin De Haan was off to the box for slashing. Claude went back to the bench, he had been on for an extended shift and he was gassed. They had Sid, Geno, Horny, Kuni, and Tanger out there while he took a rest on the bench. He was about ready to call Kuni off, but then Kris took a nice pass from Geno and wristed it hard into Halak's shoulder. It bounced right out past Horny, and Kuni just snapped it between Halak's elbow and his side. Everyone went crazy and as Tanger skated by the bench, Claude wacked him on the back of the head softly, 

"G," Dan said in a mock stern voice, "Don't break the Norris Trophy finalist," Claude grinned, 

"No problem coach," he said as he jumped over the side of the bench to take the face off. Nealer and Horny jumped on with him for a little change. He won the face off, and gave the puck to Simon. He skated it into the offensive zone and after some extended time in the zone and a bad turnover by Kris, Claude went to the bench. He drank some Gatorade and lightly kicked Kris in the left foot. When he didn't get an answer, he sprayed him with Gatorade, 

"Ok fuck you! What do you want?" Kris said with a glare, he seemed upset,

"Hi," Kris shoved him a little, and then laughed, 

"What the fuck, hi," Claude shrugged, 

"So I was thinking maybe after this we could go to a club and party," Kris was so confused, 

"What happened to you? Why are you acting weird?" Claude shrugged again, 

"I don't know, It's fun to confuse you," Kris laughed. Claude smiled, Kris didn't look so sad anymore. Claude knew his friend dwelled on mistakes a little too much, but when they got on the ice after another penalty that Geno took this time, Kris looked good. Killing penalties was something Claude enjoyed, he liked the offensive side of the game, but defense was a lot of fun as well. The Islanders started off great, they got some shots that Marc fought off as Kris tried to clear the screen away. Kris knocked it away from the slot where Kyle Okposo retrieved it and passed it to Nelson across ice. Well almost. Kris got his stick in there to intercept the pass right before it got there. He chipped it off the wall, and created a foot race between Claude and Nick Leddy. Claude won, and he shoved his left leg in there to shield the puck as he went to the net and flicked it in one handed. He pointed at Kris and then jumped into the glass as every swarmed him. He got some pats on the helmet and he grinned. "That was really fun," he said to Kris as he skated by the bench to get fist bumps. 

"It was a great shot," Kris said with a grin, 

"Nothing compared to that pass," 

Kris shook his head, "Nah, that shot was insane," Claude bumped into him a bit, as they scooted over on the bench to make room. "Dude what the fuck is your problem today," 

Claude shrugged, "Maybe you should lighten up a little," Kris rolled his eyes and threw a leg over the bench to make a change, 

"Shut up Claude," he said with a laugh before going to catch up with the play. Claude wasn't really that tired, he just was trying to stay loose and not worry about things. If he started worrying, he would start making mistakes. The period ended like that and it was good, but when they came back out, it wasn't anymore. Two goals by the Islanders had it all tied up and it was approaching the end of the game. Claude went on the ice for what he hoped would be his last shift of the game. He lost the face off, but they won it back and Claude set up in the zone. He sent the pack back to Paulie, who was pressured and saw Kris ready for the one timer. Perfect little sauce to Kris who buried it top corner, and Claude grinned and patted his helmet. They finished the game out and everyone swarmed Marc. Claude and Kris stood by the runway high giving everyone as they went past. Marc was last and they walked to the locker room together, 

"Kris you are a beast," Claude said, Flower grinned and hit Kris in the ass with his glove. Kris laughed, 

"Thanks G," They got out of gear and Flower convinced everyone to go out and celebrate. Claude sat in a booth with Kris and Marc and Sid. They ordered drinks and joked around for a while. Sid got quiet suddenly, 

"Hey G?" 

Claude turned towards him,"Yeah?" 

Sid looked serious, "Are you happy here?" 

Claude grinned, "Yes," he said, "A lot more than I expected to be," Everything was easy again after that and after paying for his drinks, Claude and Kris dragged Flower into a cab to head home. Sid stayed with Geno who was doing shots. They went back to Marc's and crashed there. They had a skate tomorrow, but not a game and Claude was tired. He couldn't sleep as he laid in the guest room. Kris and Marc were in the other room playing video games. Claude got up and went out where they were. "Can't sleep," he said in response to the questioning look he got from Flower. Kris pushed a controller into his hands, and they played for a few hours, laughing quietly, making fun of each other. Marc was stupidly happy because of the win. He was pretty hilarious all night, just happy go lucky. Kris was in a good mood as well. Claude felt good, but he was a little homesick right now. It was kind of irrational, he was always away from home and this year was no different, but for some reason he wanted to be home with his parents. They fell asleep on the floor in Flower's living room, the tv still on.


	25. Rough Patches

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoys and as always, please leave comments :)
> 
> New chapter of The Crimson Stained Ice should be up tomorrow for anyone who's is interested!

At skate the next day, they took it pretty easy, and it was relaxed. They had played pretty well in the game before so Dan kind of just let Sid run practice. Sid tried to have an actual practice but when no one was really into it, he gave up and they messed around for the rest of the time. Claude went to Kris's for the day. They watched some movies. Claude tried to keep his mind on the here and now, and not get homesick or get ahead of himself on his hopes for this year. Kris was acting really weird. He was quiet and looked upset, and Claude didn't know what was wrong with his best friend. His eyes were kind of red, so Claude knew he had been crying, but the only odd thing Kris had done all day was disappear to take a phone call. Obviously the phone call had a lot to with it, but Claude didn't know what and it was bothering him. "Dis, Kris," he said to get his friend's attention, "Est-ce que tu as faim?" 

"Quoi?" Kris asked, "Sorry I spaced," 

"Food, are you hungry," Claude replied as he looked up some restaurant numbers on his phone. 

"Oui," he said softly, "What do you want?" 

Claude shrugged, "Je ne sais pas, you?" 

Kris was silent for a minute, "What's close and you know, not gonna make me feel like shit for the game tomorrow?" 

Claude grinned, "Italian, Steak House, or Hoagies,"

"I think Italian sounds great," came a loud voice. Claude turned around, 

"Flower, who invited you?"

Marc grinned, "I did," 

Claude flipped him off, "Ok whatever, you're paying though," 

"Fuck you G, I vote you pay," they argued lightheartedly for a while. Flower ended up paying. Kris was still just quietly sitting there, and Claude was worried. He called in the order, and then Flower left to go pick it up. 

"Kris, want a beer?" Claude called from the kitchen where he was digging through the fridge. 

"Yeah, sure," came the soft answer from Kris. Claude grabbed three bottles and pushed one into Kris's hand. He set the other one on the table for Flower before taking a sip of his. Flower took forever to get back, so naturally when he finally did arrive, they gave him a hard time, well Claude did. 

"Where the fuck were you?" He said in a mock angry voice. 

Marc shoved the bags into his hands and replied, "The damn restaurant took so long to get the food ready. Oh and the fucking road was blocked up with construction," Claude laughed at him, and sat on the couch to eat. As he stood up to throw out trash, he noticed Kris was kind of just picking at his food still. Claude kicked Marc as he stood up to go to the kitchen. When the goalie glared at him, he gave him a pointed look, and gestured toward the kitchen. Marc stood up and followed him quietly. 

Once they were out of earshot, Claude whispered, "What the fuck is Kris's problem, he's been moping around all day," 

Marc shrugged and called out, "Hey dumb fuck!" Kris looked over, "What's your issue today, G says your acting weird," 

Claude put his head in his hands, "You're an idiot Marc," he muttered. Marc shoved him as Kris came into the kitchen, 

"I'm fine, stop worrying so much," was all the defenseman said. Claude shook his head and went back to finish the movie. 

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Apparently Kris wasn't fine because he played horrible the next day. Despite getting an assist, Kris missed plays all over the place. He looked like he hadn't played in weeks. Claude felt bad for him at first, but then he was oddly angry by the end of the game when Kris completely missed a poke-check and then lost his footing. It wouldn't have been such a big deal except Johnny Boychuk tied the game up right after that. Sid had scored and so had Erik, but now that didn't matter. It was a new game and New York had all the momentum. As they went into the locker room after the period, Kris got a mouthful from coach, and he looked like a scared puppy as he went to his locker. He looked at Claude, his eyes pleading for a joke or something to help him out but Claude just turned away and shook his head. 

When they went out on the ice after that, they looked discombobulated and off balance. New York had them on their heels, and Flower was the only one keeping them in this game. He was giving them a chance and they were blowing it. Claude got the puck out of the zone, and dumped it into the Islander's end so he could get a change. He sat on the bench next to Sid and watched the Penguin's get their asses kicked. There was that feeling that one eventually had to go in, and there was really no escaping it. It just turned out that (who else) Kris was carrying the puck up and turned it over right at the blue line. He got blown right by and Nick Leddy snapped the puck between Flower's leg and the far post. While the Islander's were off celebrating, Claude stalked off to the locker room. Marc gave Kris a little pat on the helmet, as the defenseman tried to catch his breath on one knee. Claude stripped out of his gear, and stalked off to his car. He drove home and took a warm shower to clear his head. He laid in bed after that, and only then did he realize what an asshole he was. He was trying to sleep, I have your back, was the sentence that popped into his mind. He fought it, Kris cost them the game, Leave it all on the ice. He kept thinking of all the bull shit that he'd said. Claude felt horrible so he unplugged his phone and called Kris. 

A few rings and then the defenseman picked up, "What G?" He asked tiredly,

Claude sighed, "Kris, I'm sorry, I was a dick earlier. It was only one game, and I was such a prick about it so I'm sorry,"

The line was silent for a few seconds, "Kristopher! I am not done talking to you," a female voice filtered through. 

"One fucking second Catherine, I'm on the phone," Kris sounded irritated, "Look G, I'm busy right now, can I call you back later?" 

"Yeah, yeah sure," Claude replied, "Call me back when you can," Kris hung up a few seconds later, and Claude felt better. He felt good that Kris wasn't too angry with him. After all the defenseman had done for him, Claude had acted like a real dick. He drifted off to sleep, but was woken up at one in the morning, his phone blaring. He picked up groggily, "Kris?" He asked. 

"Yeah G, it's me," Kris's voice was tired and defeated. He sounded like he had cried a little as well. 

"Are you alright?" He asked softly,

"No G, not really," 

Claude could tell he didn't want to talk about it so he let it go. "So I'm not sure if you quite heard what I said earlier, but I'm sorry, I was such an asshole to you, and you didn't deserve it at all," 

"Whatever G, it was just adrenaline, don't worry about it," he replied softly. 

"Thanks, so what are you up to?" 

"Just laying on the couch," Kris replied,"I am so hungry, do you want to come hang out? Bring food," 

Claude laughed, "Sure Kris, let's see, what's open at one in the morning?" 

 

"Shut up," Claude hung up a few minutes later, and he grabbed his keys and his wallet and threw a shirt on. As he slipped on some flip flops, he noticed he was wearing pajama pants, but he figured if anyone had a problem with it, they could fuck off. He stopped and picked up some sandwiches on the way to Kris's house. Kris answered the door fairly quickly, and Claude noticed how tired he looked. He sounded tired in the phone, but he looked ten times worse. Claude had brought Kris' favorite movie, and he put it in for them to watch. When he noticed Kris was shivering, off came his sweatshirt and he pushed it into the defenseman's hands, and when Kris was out cold on the couch, he grabbed a blanket to cover his friend.


	26. Levez-Vous

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So I kept telling myself I would get a chapter up and then I didn't, but finally I now am posting. This story is hard to write at times so please forgive me if it is not great in some areas. I tried. Please and enjoy and comment. Thanks :)

"Rise and Shine, levez-vous," Claude opened his eyes and looked up at Marc who was being loud. He rubbed his eyes and slowly sat before getting a glimpse of a clock, 

"Number one, what the fuck! Number two, it's eight in the morning, shut up!" Claude said exasperated. Kris was still dead to the world. When Claude laid back down, Marc threw pillows at him until he gave up and pushed himself up off the floor. He threw a pillow at Marc before going to the kitchen. He found some shattered glass and cleaned it up. What the fuck was Kris so upset about? He shook his head and got a drink. Now that he looked at the apartment in the light, it looked trashed. Kris must have been really angry before he called back. Claude shook his head and went into the living room. Marc was in the process of shaking Kris awake. Claude grabbed the goalie's arm, "Stop," he whispered, "Let him sleep," 

"Claude, we need to go to the rink, Sid called, he said he wanted to talk to the team," Marc finally explained. 

Claude rolled his eyes, "You could have said that first," he replied as he let go and Marc resumed trying to get Kris up. 

"Dude, what the fuck," Marc suddenly said laughing, "G, is this your sweatshirt?" Kris finally yawned and rubbed his eyes, 

"I was cold," Kris muttered defensively as he stood up and headed to the bathroom. Marc was sitting on the couch, clutching his stomach as he laughed. Claude shoved him, 

"Why don't you shut up," Marc just doubled over and laughed more. Kris and Claude got dressed and they headed to the rink. Marc was still laughing in the car. Claude kicked the goalie. 

"Hey, these are new pants, be careful," Marc said with a glare. His black dress pants did look expensive. He also had on a grey dress shirt, and a fuzzy black beanie. Claude had a light blue dress shirt, and a grey beanie, and Kris had a navy dress shirt with a black beanie. They pulled into the rink parking lot, and went in with cups of coffee and bag of donuts that they had picked up on the way. Claude brought an extra donut for Sid, not that he thought his friend would eat it, but it gave him an excuse to eat two. They sat down with everyone else, and Sid came in a few minutes later. Claude threw the bag at him, 

"There's a donut in there for you," Sid rolled his eyes, 

"You know I'm not going to eat it right?" Claude laughed and motioned for him to throw it back. He split the donut with Kris, sticking his tongue out at Marc who protested. It was okay though because Marc drank the rest of his coffee so now they were even. Sid started talking about how they only had so much time left, and how they needed to do good this year, "Guys, I want you to forget last year, I want you to forget the year before that. The only thing that matters is this year. So what if we've struggled in the past, not anymore, this year is our year," guys went on talking for a while, and afterward, Claude took Sid and Tanger and Marc out to eat. Kris seemed a lot better. He looked less like he wanted to crawl in bed and sleep for the rest of his life.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Marc was stretching in the crease, the whistle was about to blow. Sid lined up for the face off, and game three had begun. Kris looked much better. He was skating all over the place, still not quite himself, but he was good. Claude was in on an extended shift, Geno and James had already come on, and Claude was going to dump the puck in so he could get off, but he passed it to Geno, who made a good pass up to Nealer, and then Claude was in a good position to join so he figure what the fuck, a few more seconds wouldn't hurt. James flipped him a nice little saucer, and as Halak was moving to square up, Claude just slipped it past his five-hole. He hugged Nealer and Geno, and Olli came up from behind with Erik. 

Claude sat on the bench with a smile. He was so happy and when they kept playing well, he felt even better. Flower was phenomenal. He was seeing every puck, fighting through screens, flopping out to rob people. Claude felt great in between periods, and the second was great too. They had chances, but no one was able to bury them. The third was good though. With a late power play goal by Erik, they won, 2-0. 

 

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

They played well the in game four as well, only letting up a goal by Tavares and scoring three of their own. They were up 3-1 in the series, and it felt great. All Claude knew was they needed to close it out. In the game five though, Kris was finally back to his normal self, scoring twice and adding an assist to lead the Penguins to a 6-2 victory to close out the series. Everyone hugged Flower, and then as they shook hands, Claude was so happy. They were passed one obstacle, now they had a little rest before the next. That night they went out to celebrate, and Claude was pretty sure he saw Marc leave with some girl. Truthfully, he was too busy doing shots with Kris to know if it was real. The last thing he remembered was passing out after getting dragged out of a taxi. 

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Claude woke up in his bed, his shoes on the floor, and he had no idea how he had made it back. He took a shower, and nursed his hangover for half the day before just doing nothing for once. He just hung around Mario's and watched some tv. It felt to good to get a rest. They had practice tomorrow, and and optional skate the day after. He was half asleep when he heard the door open, and Marc and Kris came in. They played some video games and went swimming. After eating, the guys left and it was just Claude and Sid. They played some cards, and Claude ordered in dinner. Mario ate in the living room with Sid and Claude as they watched some old movies like Slapshot and Miracle on Ice. Claude went to bed around one, leaving Sid to finish whatever he was watching.


	27. A/N

Hey guys! 

 

I know it's been a while since I posted. This story has been pretty tricky for me to work on. I have been in and out of the doctors office for over a month now, and I really want to get something up soon. I hope I'll get a chance to post tonight and within the next two months hopefully I can finally finish this story. I have something new then that I will be posting and for anyone in here who read my other fic The Crimson Stained Ice, there will be a sequel to that. Please bear with me as I continue to try and get this finished. Thanks to all readers for all the support and comments and bookmarks and everything you guys do for me. Anything I write is for you guys!

 

Thanks 

KrisLetang


	28. Another Step Closer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I finally have something up! This story is giving me a hell of a time trying to finish it. Hopefully I can stay healthy and continue to move this along. Please leave me wonderful comments if any of you are still there haha sorry this took so long ;) please enjoy

Finally they found out who they were playing next. Claude sat in the living room on the couch with a beer watching game seven between the Flyers and the Rangers. The whole team was there, and Claude didn't know what he wanted to happen. He wasn't sure how he felt about playing the Flyers yet. Everything this year had been kind of uncertain for him. Kris and Marc wanted the Rangers to win so that's who Claude voted for. It was a pretty good game to watch and when it was 2-1 in the third, Claude got into it. The Rangers closed the game out and he was pretty sure Flower sighed in relief. Claude was glad to know what they were up against. This series was going to be tougher. Much tougher.

After a half hour of joking around with Sid, he went to hunt down Kris and Marc. They were by the pool, just talking, and he sat down next to Marc. "I don't think I could have handled another series with those assholes," the goalie said. Claude smiled a little. That was a good memory from his time in Philly. 

"We terrorized you," Claude said with a laugh. Marc nodded looking miserable at the thought of the memory. 

"That series sucked," Kris murmured from where he was laying on a chair. He looked really tired. Claude glanced at him, he had been better recently, but he still seemed uncharacteristically quiet. They were just comfortably silent for a while after that. Claude took off his converse and put his feet in the pool. He closed his eyes, and sighed, he felt great right now. Kris sat next to him after a few minutes. "So, you want me to yell at Marc to get food?" The defenseman asked with a grin, 

Claude smiled back in response, "Of course I do," 

"Marc go get us food," Kris called, 

"Fuck you Kris, get up off your lazy ass and do it yourself," the goalie replied,

Claude laughed, "But Flower, we don't feel like it," 

Marc grumbled and shoved Claude into the water on his way by. He came up laughing and took his wet shirt off after pushing himself back up on the side of the pool. He threw it over by Marc's stuff, and got a towel to dry his hair and his face. Sid came in to hang out with them a few minutes later and he ate a good bit of Marc's food. Kris and Claude laughed at the goalie, who was glaring at them from his pool chair. Hey ate the food he had brought them, quietly joking around until Erik made the mistake of coming into the the room. They jumped him and shoved him into the pool, running away to the living room where the guys had a basketball game on. They laughed when Erik came back, hair dripping and glaring at them. After getting bored of the basketball game they played some cards with Kuni. It was getting late and they had a games coming up in a few days, so Kris and Marc headed home, and everyone else left not long after. Claude helped clean up and then went to bed. 

 

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

In the dressing room before the first game, Claude was nervous. He took a deep breath, and he got dressed. Taping his stick gave him a minutes to just take a breath, and calm the butterflies. The only reason he could think of for the nervousness was that he actually though they had a chance this year. With the Flyers, he never really was this confident and it was new. A good new though. He skated around with Sid during warm ups. Tanger was being kind of mopey again, and he was over in the corner with Flower. At the face off, Geno lost and that kind of set the tempo for the first period. Sloppy passes, turnovers, and 2 goals for the Rangers. Claude was exhausted when he got in the locker room, and he went straight to the trainer for some ice. His ankle hurt. They checked him out and said he could play. He was so glad. He iced his ankle and sat in his stall, his jersey and shoulder pads off. Kris looked a bit better, he had come in to the locker room late before the game, quietly sitting in his locker. He had looked a little disheveled, and his belt didn't match his shoes which was especially weird for Kris. 

He had muttered a quick sorry, and then hadn't spoken much since then. Now he looked better though. He was softly smiling, looking at his phone. Claude came over to peek over his shoulder, but all he saw was a Kris listening to an audio message. "Tanger, what are you doing?" He asked softly. 

Kris jumped and quickly put his phone away, "Nothing G," was all he replied. 

Claude shook his head, and went to go mess with Marc. 

During the second Claude scored a nice goal and James scored to tie it up. Marc was playing great and the defense limited the Rangers to one chance all period. It was good. The third was pretty uneventful. It went to OT and the Rangers were suddenly all over them, shoving it down their throats. Before the Penguins knew what hit them, they had lost. It felt like a kick to the stomach. 

…………………………………………………………………………………….….…………….

The idea of getting drunk sounded really really good. That was until he had too many shots to count, threw up in a gross public bathroom, barely missing Tanger's shoes, and stumbled around town with his teammates, moping. It was depressing and the drinks weren't really helping him. 

He felt frustrated and angry about the fucking game, he missed home, and Tanger was being a fucking prick and wouldn't tell anyone what his problem was. Marc was really quiet all night, he always took playoff losses hard. After someone managed to drag him home, he took a cold shower and felt a lot more sober. He checked his phone. 12 messages 3 missed calls. Claude shook his head and decided to check later. He went to sleep.


	29. Playoff Adventures

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I just cannot seem to be consistant with this fic haha. I'll try harder, just made it past my first experience of high school midterms so yay. Now let's see if I can get around to actually posting. Leave me comments please because I absolutely love to hear what you guys have to say!

The next day was a long one. He had breakfast plans with Kris, then he had to go to the rink. After a skate, he had promised to coach a fucking peewee team, so he went and spent a couple hours doing that. Before he knew it, his day was mostly gone and when Sid invited him to dinner, he had basically given up on any alone time. He had a nice dinner with Sid and Marc. Kris had cancelled last minute. Claude kind of wanted to punch Kris. He was being a stubborn bastard and wouldn't let anyone help him out. 

He went to bed early, laying in his room, trying to go to sleep when his phone range. Claude picked up pretty quickly, "G, it's not fair," it was Kris's voice, and he tried to calm his friend down. 

"Whoa, Tanger, chill, what's wrong," 

"She fucking took him from me G," 

Claude was so confused, "Kris you're not making any sense. What are you talking about?" 

"Come and get me, I need a fucking ride," 

…………………………………………………………………….………………………………..

Claude woke up on the floor, and he was confused for a second, but then he looked up and saw Kris in his bed, fast asleep. Claude hadn't wanted his friend to go home alone. He had been too upset to explain anything to Claude, so he just brought him back to Mario's and he had passed as soon as his head touched the pillow. Claude went downstairs and got his keys to go pick up some breakfast. He brought it back and Kris was awake on his bed, wiping his eyes. "Hey, you okay?" He asked softly. 

Kris shook his head and replied, "I hate life sometimes," 

Claude laughed a little, "I know that feeling," he said with a small smile. Kris took the food that Claude had bought him and set it down on the bed so he could go throw up in the bathroom. Claude had suspected Kris would have a nasty hangover so he brought him a Gatorade from the fridge and an ice pack for his head. Kris accepted them gratefully, and sipped the Gatorade in bed. He eventually ate breakfast and they played video games. 

It was finally time for pregame nap after a good lunch and Kris stayed in the guest room. Claude set an alarm before burying himself under blankets to keep the lights out. Kris slept longer than him, so Claude quietly padded around in the kitchen getting some fruit out to make something to eat quickly because he was starving. He shook Kris awake, and left him some food on the table before he went to go get dressed. Claude pulled on a black suit. He combed his hair and stuffed a beanie into his bag for after the game. Kris was ready not too long after him, and they drove to the rink. Guys were quiet, and the anxiousness was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Losing in the playoffs was a reoccurring problem in Pittsburgh, and it was almost terrifying to imagine losing this year. 

Claude sat quietly in his stall, occasionally peaking at Kris who was scrolling through some pictures on his phone, a longing look in his eyes. Claude was slowly putting his equipment on, taking his time. He also checked all of his sticks and picked one to start with. He caught Sid in the tunnel and gave him a look as he walked by, hinting that he wanted to talk to him. On the ice, Sid found him stretching in the corner. "Hey G, what's up?" He asked.

Claude bit his lip, "Don't take this the wrong way because I'm not trying to tell you how to be a captain, but everyone seems really nervous. Maybe you should say something, tell them to relax," he said only loud enough for the captain to hear. 

Sid shrugged and smiled, "Not a bad idea," he said softly, "I really hope we don't lose this year, I'm kind of tired of it," After warm ups, Sid did just that, and Kris looked like he was calm, Flower took a deep breath, and he looked less tense as well. Guys joked around on the way out of the tunnel, and Claude grinned at Kris who was beside him, 

"I bet you two rounds and lunch tomorrow I score a goal tonight," Claude said.

Kris grinned back, "Ok, but if I score a goal and Flower gets a shutout you're buying even if you do score," 

Claude laughed, "You're on," as they skated around, he felt good, and he bumped Kris' shoulder on his way to the bench, "Get ready to buy me food because I feel good tonight," Kris laughed and skated to the line for the Anthem next to Paulie and Sid. Claude saw Kris give Marc a little tap and he smiled. Tonight was going to be good. 

 

Claude began to feel a little less secure about the deal after he passed Kris the puck from behind the net and the defenseman snapped it just in between the goalie's glove and the post to open up scoring in the second. He was glad for the lead though. This made him want to score, he was so excited and he wanted to win this bet so bad. It was okay about two minutes later when he deflected Erik's shot right in the net. Claude laughed at Kris as he sat on the bench next to him. "You're done if Flower gives up a goal," he reminded the defenseman. 

Kris shrugged, "He won't, look at how composed he is, I've practically already won," 

Claude smiled, "I don't know Kris, I think you'll be paying," Kris just laughed at him, and went over the top of the bench to join the rush. The period ended two nothing, and Claude's chances were looking slimmer. It didn't take him long to score in the third. Only about four minutes in, he took a hot pass from James, and ripped it from the half boards into the top corner. He hugged James and Kris behind the net. He scored again less than a minute later, and he was so happy as the hats flew down. Kris gave him a few pats on the back on the way to the bench. He was grinning as he sat down. The game was pretty tame from there on, Flower easily stopping each of the Rangers 22 shots, and when Geno sealed the game with an empty netter, Claude knew he had lost. He didn't mind though, a hat trick and a win in the playoffs weren't bad for a consolation prize.


	30. Paying Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just figured while I'm not busy I would get another chapter up. In light of the All Star Game today I have one thing to say: GO JOHN SCOTT! Haha, I'm done now. Enjoy and please leave me comments :)

That night while he was ordering drinks, he spotted Kris in the corner on the phone. Claude took the assortment of beers and shots to their booth, and sat down waiting for him. After a few minutes, the defenseman tiredly returned to his seat. He grabbed a couple shots, and as Claude raised an eyebrow, he downed them one at a time. Claude laughed and pushed a beer into his hand, "Slow down, you'll make yourself sick," he reminded Kris. Kris just rolled his eyes and sipped his beer. 

"So, you kicked ass tonight, congrats on the hattie," Kris said softly, trying to give some semblance of normalcy. Claude flashed a grin, 

"Flower ruined my bet," he said with a laugh, "I think he disappeared with some girl like a half hour ago," Kris laughed, but it definitely seemed strained. Claude finished his beer and went to get some more shots considering Kris drank most of them within 2 minutes of sitting down. When he returned, Kris was banging his phone down on the table, frustrated. 

"Oh my fucking God, I hate life," he muttered. Claude laughed, not prying and set down the drinks. Kris was pretty much incoherent after that, finishing most of what Claude brought. Claude took his phone so he wouldn't do anything stupid. Eventually they headed home in a cab, and he dragged Kris up to bed at Mario's not bothering to drag him all the way across town to his own house. 

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

After a pretty quiet off day that consisted of a quick run, and video games with Kris, Claude was ready to play again, he couldn't wait for the game. At practice he had a nice jump, and Kris was laughing along with him. Claude bugged Flower for most of the practice, and the goalie tripped him a few times as well as flipping him off during a water break. Claude stuck his tongue out at the goalie after spraying him with some ice. Marc tried to keep up with him as he skated away, but only succeeded in tag teaming with Kris. He skated away as fast as he could, but Kris caught up and tackled him. They sat there laughing until Sid came over, being all captainy and yelled at them. Claude just shoved his stick into Sid's skate and brought him down with them. He tried to be mad, but it didn't work very well. 

Claude and Sid went back to Mario's to get some sleep and food before the game tonight. Claude made grilled cheese as usual, and he slept for 3 hours. He usually didn't sleep that long, but he was exhausted. He got up and went to take a quick shower, put on a black suit, sleeves rolled up and a backwards baseball cap. His beard was getting nice and fuzzy. Sid looked hilarious with his usual failure of facial hair. They left together to drive to the rink, and Claude came in and sat with Kris in the player's lounge. They played cards until it was time to get dressed and warm up. Marc came in later than usual, but no one cared that much. The warm up went fast, and it was game time. Claude started on the bench next to Sid and Kris. The first period was rather uneventful. No score for either team. Both teams played well save the low amount of shots the Penguins had on net. The second was different, the Rangers still were out shooting them, but as soon as Sid scored, they seemed to have a handle on play. The flood gates bursted after that. Claude scored not long after that, and then Erik to close out the period. Everyone was grinning in the locker room, but Claude didn't get a bad vibe, everyone still seemed to comprehend there was a whole third period to play yet. 

 

The third was chippy, but when Patric scored halfway through the 3rd, it was pretty much over. Flower was grinning so hard, a second shut out in a row. It would shut up everyone who doubted him, everyone who wanted to trade him. Claude was so proud of him. He was so proud of the team. They went out celebrating again, and that night was the calm before the storm.


End file.
